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CONTENTS OF VOLUME II
EARLY HISTORICAL BOOKS {continued)
PAGE
The First Book of Samuel ...... 3
The Second Book of Samuel 64
The First Book of the Kings 116
The Second Book of the Kings 175
LATER HISTORICAL BOOKS
The First Book of the Chronicles .
The Second Book of the Chronicles
The Prayer of Manasses, King of Judah
Ezra ........
The Book of Nehemiah . .
The First Book of the Maccabees .
The Second Book of the Maccabees
I. Esdras .
235
289
353
355
374
401
459
SOI
EARLY HISTORICAL BOOKS
{Cofiihiued)
VOL. H.
A 2
THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL
Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim,
of mount Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son
of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the
son of Zuph, an Ephrathite : and he had two wives;
the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the
other Peninnah : and Peninnah had children, but
Hannah had no children. And this man went up out
of his city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the
Lord of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli,
Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the Lord, were
there.
And when the time was that Elkanah offered, he gave
to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her
daughters, portions : but unto Hannah he gave a double
portion ; for he loved Hannah : but the Lord had shut
up her womb. And her adversary also provoked her
sore, for to make her fret, because the Lord had shut
up her womb. And as he did so year by year, when
she went up to the house of the Lord, so she provoked
her ; therefore she wept, and did not eat. Then said
Elkanah her husband to her : — " Hannah, why weepest
thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart
grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons?" So
Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and
after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a
seat by a post of the temple of the Lord. And she was
in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and
wept sore. And she vowed a vow, and said : — " O
Lord of hosts, if Thou wilt indeed look on the afRiction
of Thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget
Thine handmaid, but wilt give unto Thine handmaid a
man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the
days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his
head."
And it came to pass, as she continued praying before
the Lord, that Eli marked her mouth. Now Hannah,
3
4 I. SAMUEL [i. i4_28
she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her
voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had
been drunken. And Eli said unto her:—" How long-
wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee."
And Hannah answered and said :— " No, my lord, I
am a woman of a sorrowful spirit : I have drunk neither
wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul
before the Lord. Count not thine handmaid for a
daughter of Belial : for out of the abundance of my
complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto." Then
Eh answered and said :— " Go in peace : and the God
of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of
Hini." And she said :— " Let thine handmaid find grace
in thy sight." So the woman went her way, and did
eat, and her countenance was no more sad.
And they rose up in the morning early, and wor-
shipped before the Lord, and returned, and came to
their house to Ramah : and Elkanah knew Hannah
his wife; and the Lord remembered her. Wherefore
It came to pass, when the time was come about after
Hannah had conceived, that she bare a son, and called
his name Samuel, saying :— " Because I have asked him
of the Lord. " And the man Elkanah, and all his house,
went up to offer unto the Lord the yearly sacrifice, and
his vow. But Hannah went not up ; for she said unto
her husband :— " I will not go up until the child be
weaned, and then I will bring him, that he mav appear
before the Lord, and there abide for ever." And
Elkanah her husband said unto her: — "Do what
seemeth thee good ; tarry until thou have weaned him •
only the Lord establish His word."
So the woman abode, and gave her son suck until she
weaned him. And when she had weaned him, she took
him up with her, with three bullocks, and one ephah
of flour, and a skin of wine, and brought him unto
the house of the Lord in Shiloh : and the child was
young. And they slew a bullock, and brought the child
to Eh. And she said :— " Oh my lord, as thy soul
hveth, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee
here, praying unto the Lord. For this child I prayed ;
and the Lord hath given me mv petition which I asked
of Him : therefore also I have lent him to the Lord ; as
ii. i-ii] I. SAMUEL 5
long- as he liveth he shall be lent to the Lord." And
he worshipped the Lord there. And Hannah prayed,
and said : — ■
My heart rejoiceth in the Lord,
Mine horn is exalted in the Lord :
My mouth is enlarged over mine enemies ;
Because I rejoice in Thy salvation.
There is none holy as the Lord ;
For there is none beside Thee :
Neither is there any rock like our God.
Talk no more so exceeding- proudly ;
Let not arrogancy come out of your mouth :
For the Lord is a God of knowledge,
And by Him actions are weighed.
The bows of the mighty men are broken,
And they that stumbled are girded with strength.
They that were full have hired out themselves for
bread ;
And they that were hungry ceased :
Yea, the barren hath born seven ;
And she that hath many children is waxed feeble.
The Lord killeth, and maketh alive :
He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.
The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich :
He bringeth low, and lifteth up.
He raiseth up the poor out of the dust,
He lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill,
To make them sit with princes.
And inherit the throne of glory :
For the pillars of the earth are the Lord's,
And He hath set the world upon them.
He will keep the feet of His saints.
But the wicked shall be silent in darkness ;
For by strength shall no man prevail.
The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to
pieces ;
Out of the heaven shall He thunder upon them :
The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth ;
And He shall give strength unto His king,
And exalt the horn of His anointed.
And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the
child did minister unto the Lord before Eli the priest.
6 I. SAMUEL [ii. 12-26
Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial ; they knew
not the Lord. And the priest's custom with the people
was, that, when any man offered sacrifice, the priest's
servant came, while the flesh was in seething, with a.
fleshhook of three teeth in his hand; and he struck it
into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the
fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So
they did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came
thither. Also before they burnt the fat, the priest's
servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed : —
"Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not
have sodden flesh of thee, but raw." And if the man
said unto him : — " First let them burn the fat, and
then take as much as thy soul desireth;" then he would
answer him : — " Nay; but thou shalt give it me now :
and if not, I will take it by force." Wherefore the sin
of the young men was very great before the Lord : for
men abhorred the offering of the Lord.
But Samuel ministered before the Lord, being a child,
girded with a linen ephod. INIoreover his mother made
him a little coat, and brought it to him from year to
year, when she came up with her husband to offer the
yearly sacrifice. And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife,
and said : — " The Lord give thee seed of this woman for
the loan which is lent to the Lord." And they went
unto their own home. And the Lord visited Hannah,
so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two
daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the
Lord.
Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did
unto all Israel ; and how they lay with the women that
assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congre-
gation. And he said unto them : — " Why do ye such
things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this
people. Nay, my sons ; for it is no good report that
I hear: ye make the Lord's people to transgress. If
one man sin against another, the judge shall judge
him : but if a man sin against the Lord, who shall in-
treat for him?" Notwithstanding they hearkened
not unto the voice of their father, because the Lord
would slay them. And the child Samuel grew on, and
was in favour both with the Lord, and also with men.
ii. 27_iii. 3] I. SAMUEL 7
And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said
unto him :— " Thus saith the Lord, Did I plainly appear
unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt
in Pharaoh's house? And did I choose him out of all
the tribes of Israel to be My priest, to offer upon Mine
altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before Me?
and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offer-
ings made by fire of the children of Israel? Wherefore
kick ye at My sacrifice and at Mine offering which I
have commanded in My habitation ; and honourest thy
sons above Me to make yourselves fat with the chiefest
of all the offerings of Israel My people? Wherefore
the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy
house, and the house of thy father, should walk before
Me for ever : but now the Lord saith. Be it far from
Me; for them that honour Me I will honour, and they
that despise Me shall be lightly esteemed. Behold, the
days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm
of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man
in thine house. And thou shalt see an enemy in My
habitation, in all the wealth which God shall give Israel :
and there shall not be an old man in thine house for
ever. And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off
from Mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and to
grieve thine heart : and all the increase of thine house
shall die in the flower of their age. And this shall be
a sign unto thee, that shall come upon thy two sons,
on Hophni and Phinehas ; in one day they shall die
both of them. And I will raise Me up a faithful priest,
that shall do according to that which is in Mine heart
and in My mind : and I will build him a sure house ;
and he shall walk before Mine anointed for ever. And
it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thine
house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of
silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say. Put me, I
pray thee, into one of the priests' offices, that I may eat
a piece of bread. "
And the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before
Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days ;
there was no open vision. And it came to pass at that
time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his
eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see; and ere
8 I. SAMUEL [iii. 4-18
the lamp of God went out in the temple of the Lord,
where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down
to sleep ; that the Lord called Samuel : and he an-
answered :— " Here am I." And he ran unto Eli, and
said: — ■" Here am I; for thou calledst me." And he
said : — " I called not; He down again." And he went
and lay down. And the Lord called yet again : —
' ' Samuel. ' ' And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said :
— " Here am I; for thou didst call me." And he an-
swered:— "I called not, my son; lie down again."
Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was
the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him. And the
Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose
and went to Eli, and said: — "Here am I; for thou
didst call me." And Eli perceived that the Lord had
called the child. Therefore Eli said unto Samuel :- —
" Go, lie down : and it shall be, if He call thee, that
thou shalt say. Speak, Lord; for Thy servant heareth."
So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other
times : — " Samuel, Samuel." Then Samuel answered :
— " Speak; for Thy servant heareth." And the Lord
said to Samuel: — "Behold, I will do a thing in
Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth
it shall tingle. In that day I will perform against Eli
all things which I have spoken concerning his house :
when I begin, I will also make an end. For I have
told him that I will judge his house for ever for the
iniquity which he knoweth ; because his sons made
themselves vile, and he restrained them not. And
therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the
iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice
nor offering for ever."
And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the
doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel feared
to shew Eli the vision. Then Eli called Samuel, and
said: — "Samuel, my son." And he answered: —
"Here am I." And he said: — "What is the thing
that the Lord hath said unto thee? I pray thee hide it
not from me : God do so to thee, and mere also, if thou
hide any thing from me of all the things that He said
unto thee." And Samuel told him every whit, and hid
iii. 19— iv. 10] I. SAMUEL 9
nothing from him. And he said: — " It is the Lord:
let Him do what seemeth Him good." And Samuel
grew, and the Lord was with him, and did let none of
His words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan
even to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was established
to be a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared
again in Shiloh : for the Lord revealed Himself to
Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the Lord.
And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now
Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and
pitched beside Eben-ezer : and the Philistines pitched
in Aphek. And the Philistines put themselves in array
against Israel : and when they joined battle, Israel was
smitten before the Philistines : and they slew of the
army in the field about four thousand men. And when
the people were come into the camp, the elders of Israel
said: — "Wherefore hath the Lord smitten us to-day
before the Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the
covenant of the Lord out of Shiloh unto us, that, when
it cometh among us, it may save us out of the hand of
our enemies." So the people sent to Shiloh, that they
might bring from thence the ark of the covenant of the
Lord of hosts, which dwelleth between the cherubim :
and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were
there with the ark of the covenant of God. And when
the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp,
all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth
rang again. And when the Philistines heard the noise
of the shout, they said : — " What meaneth the noise of
this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews?" And
they understood that the ark of the Lord was come into
the camp. And the Philistines were afraid, for they
said : — " God is come into the camp." And they said :
— " Woe unto us ! for there hath not been such a thing
heretofore. Woe unto us ! who shall deliver us out
of the hand of these mighty Gods? these are the Gods
that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the
wilderness. Be strong, and quit yourselves like men,
O ye Philistines, that ye be not servants unto the
Hebrews, as they have been to you : quit yourselves
like men, and fight."
And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten,
10
I. SAMUEL [iv. II-
and they fled every man into his tent : and there was a
very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty
thousand footmen. And the ark of God was taken;
and the two sons of EU, Hophni and Phinehas, were
slain. And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the
army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes
rent, and with earth upon his head. And when he came,
lo, Eli sat upon a seat by the wayside watching : for his
heart trembled for the ark of God. And when the man
came into the city, and told it, all the city cried out.
And when EU heard the noise of the crying, he said :
— " What meaneth the noise of this tumult?" And
the man came in hastily, and told Eli. Now Eli was
ninety and eight years old ; and his eyes were dim, that
he could not see. And the man said unto Eli : — " I am
he that came out of the army, and I fled to-day out of
the army." And he said : — " What is there done, my
son?" And the messenger answered and said : —
" Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there hath
been also a great slaughter among the people, and thy
two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the
ark of God is taken," And it came to pass, when he
made mention of the ark of God, that he fell from off
the seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck
brake, and he died : for he was an old man, and heavy.
And he had judged Israel forty years.
And his daughter in law, Phinehas' wife, was with
child, near to be delivered : and when she heard the
tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her
father in law and her husband were dead, she bowed
herself and travailed ; for her pains came upon her.
And about the time of her death the women that stood
by her said unto her : — " Fear not; for thou hast born
a son." But she answered not, neither did she regard
it. And she named the child I-chabod, saying : — " The
glory is departed from Israel :" because the ark of God
was taken, and because of her father in law and her
husband. And she said : — " The glory is departed
from Israel : for the ark of God is taken."
And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought
it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod. When the Philistines
took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of
V. 3— vi. 2] I. SAMUEL 1 1
Dagon, and set It by Dagon. And when they of Ashdod
arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen
upon his face to the earth before the ark of the Lord.
And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again.
And when they arose early on the morrow morning, be-
hold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground,
before the ark of the Lord ; and the head of Dagon and
both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the thres-
hold ; only the stump of Dagon was left to him. There-
fore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come
into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon
in Ashdod unto this day. But the hand of the Lord
was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and He destroyed
them, and smote them with emerods, even Ashdod and
the coasts thereof. And when the men of Ashdod saw
that it was so, they said: — "The ark of the God of
Israel shall not abide with us : for His hand is sore
upon us, and upon Dagon our god." They sent there-
fore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto
them, and said : — " What shall we do with the ark of
the God of Israel?" And they answered: — "Let the
ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath."
And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about
thither. And it was so, that, after they had carried
it about, the hand of the Lord was against the city
with a very great destruction : and He smote the men
of the city, both small and great, and they had eme-
rods in their secret parts. Therefore they sent the ark
of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of
God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, say-
ing : — "They have brought about the ark of the God
of Israel to us, to slay us and our people." So they
sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philis-
tines, and said: — " Send away the ark of the God of
Israel, and let it go again to its own place, that it slay
us not, and our people:" for there was a deadly de-
struction throughout all the city ; the hand of God was
very heavy there. And the men that died not were
smitten with the emerods : and the cry of the city went
up to heaven.
And the ark of the Lord was in the country of the
Philistines seven months. And the Philistines called
12 I. SAMUEL [vi. 3-13
for the priests and the diviners, saying- : — " What shall
we do to the ark of the Lord ? tell us wherewith we shall
send it to its place." And they said: — "If ye send
away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty ;
but in any wise return Him a trespass offering : then
ye shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why His
hand is not removed from you." Then said they: —
" What shall be the trespass offering which we shall
return to Him?" They answered: — "Five golden
emerods, and five golden mice, according to the number
of the lords of the Philistines : for one plague was on
you all, and on your lords. Wherefore ye shall make
images of your emerods, and images of your mice that
mar the land ; and ye shall give glory unto the God of
Israel : peradventure He will lighten His hand from off
you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, as the Egyp-
tians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? when He had
wrought wonderfully among them, did they not let the
people go, and they departed? Now therefore make a
new cart, and take two milch kine, on which there hath
come no yoke, and tie the kine to the cart, and bring
their calves home from them : and take the ark of the
Lord, and lay it upon the cart ; and put the jewels of
gold, which ye return Him for a trespass offering, in a
coffer by the side thereof ; and send it away, that it
may go. And see, if it goeth up by the way of His
own coast to Beth-shemesh, then He hath done us this
great evil : but if not, then we shall know that it is not
His hand that smote us ; it was a chance that happened
to us."
And the men did so ; and took two milch kine, and
tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home :
and they laid the ark of the Lord upon the cart, and the
coffer with the mice of gold and the images of their
emerods. And the kine took the straight way by the
way to Beth-shemesh, and went along the highway,
lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right
hand or to the left ; and the lords of the Philistines
went after them unto the border of Beth-shemesh. And
they of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest
in the valley : and they lifted up their eyes and saw
vi. 14— vii. 3] I. SAMUEL 13
the ark, and rejoiced to see it. And the cart came into
the field of Joshua, a Beth-shemite, and stood there,
where there was a great stone : and they clave the wood
of the cart, and offered the kine a burnt offering unto
the Lord. And the Levites took down the ark of the
Lord, and the coffer that was with it, wherein the
jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone :
and the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings
and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the Lord.
And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it,
they returned to Ekron the same day.
And these are the golden emerods which the Philis-
tines returned for a trespass offering unto the Lord ; for
Ashdod one, for Gaza one, for Askelon one, for Gath
one, for Ekron one ; and the golden mice, according
to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging
to the five lords, both of fenced cities, and of country
villages, even unto the great stone of Abel, whereon
they set down the ark of the Lord : which stone re-
maineth unto this day in the field of Joshua the Beth-
shemite.
And He smote the men of Beth-shemesh, because
they had looked into the ark of the Lord, even He smote
of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men :
and the people lamented, because the Lord had smitten
many of the people with a great slaughter. And the
men of Beth-shemesh said : — " Who is able to stand
before this holy Lord God? and to whom shall He go
up from us?" And they sent messengers to the in-
habitants of Kirjath-jearim, saying: — "The Philistines
have brought again the ark of the Lord ; come ye down,
and fetch it up to you. " And the men of Kirjath-jearim
came, and fetched up the ark of the Lord, and brought
it into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified
Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the Lord. And it
came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjath-jearim,
that the time was long ; for it was twenty years : and
all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.
And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, say-
ing : — " If ye do return unto the Lord with all your
hearts, then put away the strange gods and the Ash-
taroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto
14 I. SAMUEL [vii. 4-17
the Lord, and serve Him only : and He will deliver you
out of the hand of the Philistines." Then the children
of Israel did put away the Baalim and the Ashtaroth,
and served the Lord only.
And Samuel said : — " Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, and
I will pray for you unto the Lord." And they
gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water, and
poured it out before the Lord, and fasted on that
day, and said there: — "We have sinned against the
Lord." And Samuel judged the children of Israel
in Mizpeh. And when the Philistines heard that the
children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpeh,
the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel.
And when the children of Israel heard it, they
were afraid of the Philistines. And the children of
Israel said to Samuel: — "Cease not to cry unto the
Lord our God for us, that He will save us out of the
hand of the Philistines." And Samuel took a sucking
lamb, and offered it for a burnt offering wholly unto
the Lord : and Samuel cried unto the Lord for Israel ;
and the Lord heard him. And as Samuel was offering
up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle
against Israel : but the Lord thundered with a great
thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discom-
fited them ; and they were smitten before Israel. And
the men of Israel went out of Mizpeh, and pursued the
Philistines, and smote them, until they came under
Beth-car. Then Samuel took a stone, and set it be-
tween Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it
Ebenezer, saying: — ^" Hitherto hath the Lord helped
us."
So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no
more into the coast of Israel : and the hand of the Lord
was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. And
the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel
were restored to Israel, from Ekron even unto Gath ;
and the coasts thereof did Israel deliver out of the hands
of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel
and the Amorites. And Sam.uel judged Israel all the
days of his life. And he went from year to year in
circuit to Beth-el, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged
Israel in all those places. And his return was to
viii. 1-16] I. SAMUEL 15
Ramah ; for there was his house ; and there he judged
Israel ; and there he built an altar unto the Lord.
And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he
made his sons judges over Israel. Now the name of his
firstborn was Joel ; and the name of his second, Abiah :
they were judges in Beer-sheba. And his sons walked not
in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes,
and perverted judgment. Then all the elders of Israel
gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto
Ramah, and said unto him : — " Behold, thou art old, and
thy sons walk not in thy ways : now make us a king to
judge us like all the nations. " But the thing displeased
Samuel, when they said: — " Give us a king to judge
us." And Samuel prayed unto the Lord. And the
Lord said unto Samuel: — "Hearken unto the voice
of the people in all that they say unto thee : for they
have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me,
that I should not reign over them. According to all
the works which they have done since the day that I
brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day,
wherewith they have forsaken Me, and served other
gods, so do they also unto thee. Now therefore hearken
unto their voice : howbeit yet protest solemnly unto
them, and shew them the manner of the king that shall
reign over them."
And Samuel told all the words of the Lord unto the
people that asked of him a king. And he said : — " This
will be the manner of the king that shall reign over
you : he will take your sons, and appoint them for
himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen ; and
some shall run before his chariots. And he will appoint
him captains over thousands,, and captains over fifties;
and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his
harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and in-
struments of his chariots. And he will take your
daughters to be confectionaries, and to be cooks, and to
be bakers. And he will take your fields, and your vine-
yards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and
give them to his servants. And he will take the tenth of
your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers,
to his servants. And he will take your menservants, and
your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and
i6 I. SAMUEL [viii. 17— ix. 8
your asses, and put them to his work. He will take the
tenth of your sheep : and ye shall be his servants. And
ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which
ye shall have chosen you ; and the Lord will not hear
you in that day." Nevertheless the people refused to
obey the voice of Samuel; and they said : — " Nay; but
we will have a king over us ; that we also may be like
all the nations ; and that our king may judge us, and go
out before us, and fight our battles." And Samuel
heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed
them in the ears of the Lord. And the Lord said to
Samuel : — " Hearken unto their voice, and make them
a king." And Samuel said unto the men of Israel : —
" Go ye every man unto his city."
Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was
Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of
Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty
man of power. And he had a son, whose name was
Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly : and there
was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person
than he : from his shoulders and upward he was higher
than any of the people.
And the asses of Kish Saul's father were lost. And
Kish said to Saul his son : — " Take now one of the
servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses." And
he passed through the hill country of Ephraim, and
passed through the land of Shalisha, but they found them
not : then they passed through the land of Shalim, and
there they were not : and he passed through the land of
the Benjamites, but they found them not. When they
were come to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant
that was with him : — " Come, and let us return ; lest my
father leave caring for the asses, and take thought for
us. " And he said unto him : — " Behold now, there is in
this city a man of God, and he is an honourable man ; all
that he saith cometh surely to pass : now let us go
thither; peradventure he can shew us our way that we
should go." Then said Saul to his servant: — " But,
behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? for the
bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present
to bring to the man of God : what have we?" And the
servant answered Saul again, and said: — "Behold, I
ix. 9-21] I. SAMUEL 17
have here at hand the fourth part of a shekel of silver :
that will I give to the man of God, to tell us our way."
(Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to enquire of
God, thus he spake : — " Come, and let us go to the
seer : ' ' for he that is now called a Prophet was before-
time called a Seer.) Then said Saul to his servant : —
" Well said; come, let us go." So they went unto the
city where the man of God was.
And as they went up the hill to the city, they found
young maidens going out to draw water, and said unto
them : — " Is the seer here?" And they answered them,
and said: — "He is; behold, he is before you: make
haste now, for he came to-day to the city ; for there is a
sacrifice of the people to-day in the high place : as soon
as ye be come into the city, ye shall straightway find
him, before he go up to the high place to eat : for the
people will not eat until he come, because he doth bless
the sacrifice; and afterwards they eat that be bidden.
Now therefore get you up ; for about this time ye shall
find him." And they went up into the city : and when
they were come into the city, behold, Samuel came out
against them, for to go up to the high place.
Now the Lord had told Samuel in his ear a day before
Saul came, saying: — "To-morrow about this time I
will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and
thou shalt anoint him to be captain over My people
Israel, that he may save My people out of the hand of
the Philistines : for I have looked upon My people, be-
cause their cry is come unto Me." And when Samuel
saw Saul, the Lord said unto him : — " Behold the man
whom I spake to thee of ! this same shall reign over
My people." Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the
gate, and said: — "Tell me, I pray thee, where the
seer's house is." And Samuel answered Saul, and
said : — " I am the seer : go up before me unto the high
place; for ye shall eat with me to-day and to-morrow
I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thine
heart. And as for thine asses that were lost three days
ago, set not thy mind on tli£iaj for they are found.
And on whom is all the d^sire-dT Israel? Is it not on
thee, and on all thy /fatkfTT'^us^^e?" And Saul
answered and said •.—'lAfn not I \ B^njamite, of the
VOL. II. I IBRARV B
1 8 I. SAMUEL [ix. 22— x. 5
smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least
of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? wherefore
then speakest thou so to me?"
And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought
them into the parlour, and made them sit in the chiefest
place among them that were bidden, which were about
thirty persons. And Samuel said unto the cook : —
" Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said
unto thee, Set it by thee." And the cook took up the
shoulder, and that which was upon it, and set it before
Saul. And Samuel said : — " Behold that which is left !
set it before thee, and eat : for unto this time hath it
been kept for thee since I said, I have invited the
people." So Saul did eat with Samuel that day. And
when they were come down from the high place into
the city, Samuel communed with Saul upon the top of
the house. And they arose early : and it came to pass
about the spring of the day, that Samuel called Saul
to the top of the house, saying: — "Up, that I may
send thee away." And Saul arose, and they went out
both of them, he and Samuel, abroad. And as they
were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said
to Saul: — " Bid the servant pass on before us," (and
he passed on,) " but stand thou still a while, that I
may shew thee the word of God."
Then Samuel took a vial of oil, and poured it upon
his head, and kissed him, and said : — " Is it not because
the Lord hath anointed thee to be captain over His in-
heritance? When thou art departed from me to-day,
then thou shalt find two men by Rachel's sepulchre in
the border of Benjamin at Zelzah ; and they will say
unto thee, The asses which thou wentest to seek are
found : and, lo, thy father hath left the care of the
asses, and sorroweth for you, saying. What shall I do
for my son? Then shalt thou go on forward from
thence, and thou shalt come to the plain of Tabor, and
there shall meet thee three men going up to God to
Beth-el, one carrying three kids, and another carrying
three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of
wine : and they will salute thee, and give thee two
loaves of bread ; which thou shalt receive of their hands.
After that thou shalt come to the hill of God, where is the
X. 6-19] I. SAMUEL 19
garrison of the Philistines : and it shall come to pass,
when thou are come thither to the city, that thou shalt
meet a company of prophets coming- down from the high
place with a psaltery, and a tabret, and a pipe, and a harp,
before them ; and they shall prophesy : and the Spirit of
the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy
with them, and shalt be turned into another man. And
let it be, when these signs are come unto thee, that
thou do as occasion serve thee ; for God is with thee.
And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and,
behold, I will come down unto thee, to offer burnt
offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings :
seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come to thee, and
shew thee what thou shalt do."
And it was so, that when he had turned his back to
go from Samuel, God gave him another heart : and all
those signs came to pass that day. And when they
came thither to the hill, behold, a company of prophets
met him ; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he
prophesied among them. And it came to pass, when all
that knew him beforetime saw that, behold, he pro-
phesied among the prophets, then the people said one
to another : — " What is this that is come unto the son
of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?" And
one of the same place answered and said : — '* But who
is their father?" Therefore it became a proverb: —
" Is Saul also among the prophets?" And when he
had made an end of prophesying, he came to the high
place. And Saul's uncle said unto him and to his serv-
ant : — " Whither went ye?" And he said : — " To seek
the asses : and when we saw that they were no where,
we came to Samuel." And Saul's uncle said : — " Tell
me, I pray thee, what Samuel said unto you." And
Saul said unto his uncle : — " He told us plainly that the
asses were found." But of the matter of the kingdom,
whereof Samuel spake, he told him not.
And Samuel called the people together unto the Lord
to Mizpeh ; and said unto the children of Israel: —
" Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I brought up
Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the hand
of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all the king-
doms that oppressed you : and ye have this day rejected
20 I. SAMUEL [x. 20— xi. 5
your God, who Himself saved you out of all your adver-
sities and your tribulations ; and ye have said unto Him,
Nay, but set a king over us. Now therefore present
yourselves before the Lord by your tribes, and by your
thousands." And when Samuel had caused all the
tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin
was taken. When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin
to come near by their families, the family of Matri was
taken, and Saul the son of Kish was taken : and when
they sought him, he could not be found. Therefore
they enquired of the Lord further, if the man should
yet come thither. And the Lord answered : — " Behold,
he hath hid himself among the stuff." And they ran
and fetched him thence : and when he stood among the
people, he was higher than any of the people from his
shoulders and upward. And Samuel said to all the
people : — " See ye him whom the Lord hath chosen, that
there is none like him among all the people?" And
all the people shouted, and said: — "God save the
king." Then Samuel told the people the manner of
the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up
before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away,
every man to his house. And Saul also went home to
Gibeah ; and there went with him a band of men, whose
hearts God had touched. But the children of Belial
said: — "How shall this man save us?" And they
despised him, and brought him no presents. But he
held his peace.
Then Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped
against Jabesh-gilead : and all the men of Jabesh said
unto Nahash: — "Make a covenant with us, and we
will serve thee." And Nahash the Ammonite answered
them : — " On this condition will I make a covenant with
you, that I may thrust out all your right eyes, and lay
it for a reproach upon all Israel." And the elders of
Jabesh said unto him : — " Give us seven days' respite,
that we may send messengers unto all the coasts of
Israel : and then, if there be no man to save us, we will
come out to thee."
Then came the messengers to Gibeah of Saul, and
told the tidings in the ears of the people : and all the
people lifted up their voices, and wept. And, behold.
xi. 6— xii. 2] L SAMUEL 21
Saul came after the herd out of the field ; and Saul
said :■ — •" What aileth the people that they weep?" And
they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh. And
the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those
tiding-s, and his anger was kindled greatly. And he
took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in pieces, and sent
them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of
messengers, saying : — " Whosoever cometh not forth
after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done unto
his oxen." And the fear of the Lord fell on the people,
and they came out with one consent. And when he
numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were
three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty
thousand. And they said unto the messengers that
came: — "Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabesh-
gilead, To-morrow, by that time the sun be hot, ye shall
have help." And the messengers came and shewed it
to the men of Jabesh ; and they were glad. Therefore
the men of Jabesh said: — "To-morrow we will come
out unto you, and ye shall do with us all that seemeth
good unto you." And it was so on the morrow, that
Saul put the people in three companies ; and they came
into the midst of the host in the morning watch, and
slew the Ammonites until the heat of the day : and it
came to pass, that they which remained were scattered,
so that two of them were not left together.
And the people said unto Samuel : — " Who is he that
said. Shall Saul reign over us? bring the men, that we
may put them to death." And Saul said: — "There
shall not a man be put to death this day : for to-day
the Lord hath wrought salvation in Israel." Then said
Samuel to the people : — " Come, and let us go to Gilgal,
and renew the kingdom there." And all the people
went to Gilgal ; and there they made Saul king before
the Lord in Gilgal; and there they sacrificed sacrifices
of peace offerings before the Lord ; and there Saul and
all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
And Samuel said unto all Israel : — " Behold, I have
hearkened unto your voice in all that ye said unto me,
and have made a king over you. And now, behold, the
king walketh before you : and I am old and grayheaded ;
and, behold, my sons are with you : and I have walked
22 I. SAMUEL [xii. 3-15
before you from my childhood unto this day. Behold,
here I am : witness against me before the Lord, and
before His anointed : whose ox have I taken ? or whose
ass ha\'e I taken ? or whom have I defrauded ? whom
have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I received
any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will
restore it you." And they said: — "Thou hast not
defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken
ought of any man's hand." And he said unto them : —
" The Lord is witness against you, and His anointed
is witness this day, that ye have not found ought in my
hand." And they answered: — " He is witness."
And Samuel said unto the people: — " It is the Lord
that made Moses and Aaron, and that brought your
fathers up out of the land of Egypt. Now therefore
stand still, that I may reason with you before the Lord
of all the righteous acts of the Lord, which He did to
you and to your fathers. When Jacob was come into
Egypt, and your fathers cried unto the Lord, then the
Lord sent Moses and Aaron, which brought forth your
fathers out of Egypt, and made them dwell in this
place. And when they forgat the Lord their God, He
sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the host
of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into
the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against
them. And they cried unto the Lord, and said. We
have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord, and
have served the Baalim and the Ashtaroth : but now
deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will
serve Thee. And the Lord sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan,
and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of
the hand of your enemies on every side, and ye dwelled
safe. And when ye saw that Nahash the king of the
children of Ammon came against you, ye said unto me,
Nay ; but a king shall reign over us : when the Lord
your God was your king. Now therefore behold the
king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have desired !
and, behold, the Lord hath set a king over you. If ye
will fear the Lord, and serve Him, and obey His voice,
and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord,
then shall both ye and also the king that reigneth over
you continue following the Lord your God : but if ye
xii. i6— xiii. 4] I. SAMUEL 23
will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against
the commandment of the Lord, then shall the hand of
the Lord be against you, as it was against your fathers.
Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which
the Lord will do before your eyes. Is it not wheat
harvest to-day? I will call unto the Lord, and He shall
send thunder and rain ; that ye may perceive and see
that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the
sight of the Lord, in asking you a king."
So Samuel called unto the Lord ; and the Lord sent
thunder and rain that day : and all the people greatly
feared the Lord and Samuel. And all the people said
unto Samuel : — " Pray for thy servants unto the Lord
thy God, that we die not : for we have added unto all
our sins, this evil, to ask us a king." And Samuel
said unto the people: — "Fear not: ye have done all
this wickedness : yet turn not aside from following the
Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart ; and turn
ye not aside : for then should ye go after vain things,
which cannot profit nor deliver ; for they are vain. For
the Lord will not forsake His people for His great
name's sake : because it hath pleased the Lord to make
you His people. Moreover as for me, God forbid that
I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for
you : but I will teach you the good and the right way :
only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your
heart : for consider how great things He hath done foi
you. But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be
consumed, both ye and your king."
Saul was (thirty) years old when he began to reign ;
and he reigned (two) years over Israel. And Saul chose
him three thousand men of Israel ; whereof two thousand
were with Saul in Michmash and in mount Beth-el, and
a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin :
and the rest of the people he sent every man to his tent.
And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that
was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And
Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, say-
ing : — " Let the Hebrews hear." And all Israel heard
say that Saul had smitten a garrison of the Philistines,
and that Israel also was had in abomination with the
Philistines. And the people were called together after
24 I. SAMUEL [xiii. 5-16
Saul to Gilgal. And the Philistines gathered them-
selves together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand
chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and people as the
sand which is on the sea shore in multitude : and they
came up, and pitched in Michmash, eastward from
Beth-aven. When the men of Israel saw that they were
in a strait, (for the people were distressed,) then the
people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets,
and in rocks, and in high places, and in pits. And some
of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad
and Gilead. As for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all
the people followed him trembling.
And he tarried seven days, according to the set time
that Samuel had appointed : but Samuel came not to
Gilgal ; and the people w ere scattered from him. And
Saul said : — " Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and
peace offerings." And he offered the burnt offering.
And it came to pass, that as soon as he had made an
end of offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came ;
and Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute
him. And Samuel said: — "What hast thou done?"
And Saul said : — " Because I saw that the people were
scattered from me, and that thou camest not within
the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered
themselves together at Michmash; therefore said I, The
Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and
I have not made supplication unto the Lord : I forced
myself, therefore, and offered a burnt offering." And
Samuel said to Saul : — " Thou hast done foolishly : thou
hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God,
which He commanded thee ; for now would the Lord
have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. But
now thy kingdom shall not continue : the Lord hath
sought Him a man after His own heart, and the Lord
hath commanded him to be captain over His people,
because thou hast not kept that which the Lord com-
manded thee. "
And Samuel arose, and gat him up from Gilgal unto
Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people
that were present with him, about six hundred men.
And Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that
were present with them, abode in Gibeah of Benjamin :
xiii. 17— xiv. 6] I. SAMUEL 25
but the Philistines encamped in Michmash. And the
spoilers came out of the camp of the Philistines in three
companies : one company turned unto the way that
leadeth to Ophrah, unto the land of Shual : and another
company turned the way to Beth-horon : and another
company turned to the way of the border that looketh
to the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.
Now there was no smith found throughout all the
land of Israel: for the Philistines said: — "Lest the
Hebrews make them swords or spears:" but all the
Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every
man his share, and his coulter, and his axe, and his
mattock. Yet they had a file for the mattocks, and
for the coulters, and for the forks, and for the axes, and
to sharpen the goads. So it came to pass in the day
of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found
in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and
Jonathan : but with Saul and with Jonathan his son
was there found. And the garrison of the Philistines
went out to the passage of Michmash.
Now it came to pass upon a day, that Jonathan the
son of Saul said unto the young man that bare his
armour : — " Come, and let us go over to the Philistines'
garrison, that is on the other side." But he told not
his father. And Saul tarried in the uttermost part of
Gibeah under a pomegranate tree which is in Migron :
and the people that were with him were about six
hundred men; and Ahiah, the son of Ahitub, I-chabod's
brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the Lord's
priest in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people
knew not that Jonathan was gone.
And between the passages, by which Jonathan sought
to go over unto the Philistines' garrison, there was a
sharp rock on the one side, and a sharp rock on the
other side : and the name of the one was Bozez; and the
name of the other Seneh. The forefront of the one
was situate northward over against Michmash, and the
other southward over against Gibeah. And Jonathan
said to the young man that bare his armour : — " Come,
and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncir-
cumcised : it may be that the Lord will work for us :
for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many
26 I. SAMUEL [xiv. 7-20
or by few." And his armourbearer said unto him: —
"Do all that is in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I
am with thee according to thy heart." Then said Jona-
than : — " Behold, we will pass over unto these men, and
we will discover ourselves unto them. If they say
thus unto us. Tarry until we come to you; then we
will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto
them. But if they say thus. Come up unto us; then
we will go up : for the Lord hath delivered them into
our hand : and this shall be a sign unto us."
And both of them discovered themselves unto the
garrison of the Philistines : and the Philistines said : —
" Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where
they had hid themselves." And the men of the garrison
answered Jonathan and his armourbearer, and said : —
" Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing." And
Jonathan said unto his armourbearer : — " Come up after
me : for the Lord hath delivered them into the hand
of Israel." And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands
and upon his feet, and his armourbearer after him : and
they fell before Jonathan ; and his armourbearer slew
after him. And that first slaughter, which Jonathan
and his armourbearer made, was about twenty men,
within as it were an half acre of land, which a yoke of
oxen might plow. And there was trembling in the
host, in the field, and among all the people : the garri-
son, and the spoilers, they also trembled, and the earth
quaked : so it was a very great trembling.
And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin
looked ; and, behold, the multitude melted away, and
they went on beating down one another. Then said
Saul unto the people that were with him.:—" Number
now, and see who is gone from us." And when they
had numbered, behold, Jonathan and his armourbearer
were not there. And Saul said unto Ahiah : — " Bring
hither the ark of God." For the ark of God was at
that time with the children of Israel. And it came to
pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the noise
that w^as in the host of the Philistines went on and in-
creased : and Saul said unto the priest: — "Withdraw
thine hand." And Saul and all the people that were
with him assembled themselves, and they came to the
xiv. 21-33] I. SAMUEL 27
battle : and, behold, every man's sword was against his
fellow, and there was a very great discomfiture. More-
over the Hebrews that were with the Philistines before
that time, which went up with them into the camp from
the country round about, even they also turned to be
with the Israelites that were with Saul and Jonathan.
Likewise all the men of Israel which had hid themselves
in the hill country of Ephraim, when they heard that the
Philistines fled, even they also followed hard after them
in the battle. So the Lord saved Israel that day : and
the battle passed over unto Beth-aven.
And the men of Israel were distressed that day : for
Saul had adjured the people, saying : — " Cursed be the
man that eateth any food until evening, that I may be
avenged on mine enemies." So none of the people
tasted any food. And all the people came to a wood ;
and there was honey upon the ground. And when
the people were come into the wood, behold, the
honey dropped ; but no man put his hand to his mouth :
for the people feared the oath. But Jonathan heard
not when his father charged the people with the oath :
wherefore he put forth the end of the rod that was in
his hand, and dipped it in an honeycomb, and put his
hand to his mouth ; and his eyes were enlightened. Then
answered one of the people, and said :-?-" Thy father
straitly charged the people with an oath, saying, Cursed
be the man that eateth any food this day," And the
people were faint. Then said Jonathan : — " My father
hath troubled the land : see, I pray you, how mine eyes
have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this
honey. How much more, if haply the people had eaten
freely to-day of the spoil of their enemies which they
found? for had there not been now a much greater
slaughter among the Philistines?"
And they smote the Philistines that day from Mich-
mash to Aijalon : and the people were very faint. And
the people flew upon the spoil, and took sheep, and
oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground : and
the people did eat them with the blood. Then they told
Saul, saying: — "Behold, the people sin against the
Lord, in that they eat with the blood. " And he said : —
" Ye have transgressed : roll a great stone unto me this
28 I. SAMUEL [xiv. 34-46
day." And Saul said: — "Disperse yourselves among
the people, and say unto them, Bring me hither every
man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slay them
here, and eat ; and sin not against the Lord in eating
with the blood." And all the people brought every
man his ox with him that night, and slew them there.
And Saul built an altar unto the Lord : the same was the
first altar that he built unto the Lord.
And Saul said: — " Let us go down after the Philis-
tines by night, and spoil them until the morning light,
and let us not leave a man of them. " And they said : —
" Do whatsoever seemeth good unto thee." Then said
the priest: — "Let us draw near hither unto God."
And Saul asked counsel of God: — " Shall I go down
after the Philistines ? wilt Thou deliver them into the
hand of Israel?" But He answered him not that day.
And Saul said:—" Draw ye near hither, all the chief
of the people : and know and see wherein this sin hath
been this day. For, as the Lord liveth, which saveth
Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely
die." But there was not a man among all the people
that answered him. Then said he unto all Israel : —
"Be ye on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will
be on the other side. " And the people said unto Saul : —
" Do what seemeth good unto thee." Therefore Saul
said unto the Lord God of Israel: — "Give a perfect
lot." And Saul and Jonathan were taken: but the
people escaped. And Saul said: — " Cast lots between
me and Jonathan my son." And Jonathan was taken.
Then Saul said to Jonathan: — "Tell me what thou
hast done." And Jonathan told him, and said: — "I
did but taste a little honey with the end of the rod that
was in mine hand, and, lo, I must die." And Saul
answered : — " God do so and more also : for thou shalt
surely die, Jonathan." And the people said unto
Saul: — "Shall Jonathan die, who hath wrought this
great salvation in Israel? God forbid : as the Lord
liveth, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the
ground; for he hath wrought with God this day." So
the people rescued Jonathan, that he died not. Then
Saul went up from following the Philistines : and the
Philistines went to their own place.
xiv. 47— XV. 9] I. SAMUEL 29
So Saul took the kingdom over Israel, and fought
against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and
against the children of Ammon, and against Edom, and
against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines :
and whithersoever he turned himself, he vexed them.
And he gathered an host, and smote the Amalekites,
and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that
spoiled them.
Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishui, and
Melchi-shua : and the names of his two daughters were
these ; the name of the firstborn Merab, and the name
of the younger Michal : and the name of Saul's wife
was Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz : and the name
of the captain of his host was Abner, the son of Ner,
Saul's uncle. And Kish was the father of Saul; and
Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel. And
there was sore war against the Philistines all the days
of Saul : and when Saul saw any strong man, or any
valiant man, he took him unto him.
Samuel also said unto Saul : — " The Lord sent me to
anoint thee to be king over His people, over Israel :
now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words
of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I remember
that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for
him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. Now go
and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they
have, and spare them not; but slay both man and
woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and
ass."
And Saul gathered the people together, and numbered
them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and
ten thousand men of Judah. And Saul came to a city
of Amalek, and laid wait in the valley. And Saul said
unto the Kenites : — " Go, depart, get you down from
among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them :
for ye shewed kindness to all the children of Israel,
when they came up out of Egypt." So the Kenites
departed from among the Amalekites. And Saul smote
the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur,
that is over against Egypt. And he took Agag the
king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all
the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and
30 I. SAMUEL [xv. 10-22
the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and
of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all
that was good, and would not utterly destroy them : but
every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed
utterly.
Then came the word of the Lord unto Samuel, say-
ing : — " It repenteth Me that I have set up Saul to be
king : for he is turned back from following Me, and
hath not performed My commandments. ' ' And it grieved
Samuel; and he cried unto the Lord all night. And
when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning,
it was told Samuel, saying: — " Saul came to Carmel,
and, behold, he set him up a place, and is gone about,
and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal. " And Samuel
came to Saul : and Saul said unto him : — " Blessed be
thou of the Lord : I have performed the commandment
of the Lord." And Samuel said: — "What meaneth
then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the
lowing of the oxen which I hear?" And Saul said : —
"They have brought them from the Amalekites : for
the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen,
to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God ; and the rest we have
utterly destroyed." Then Samuel said unto Saul: —
" Stay, and I will tell thee what the Lord hath said to
me this night." And he said unto him: — " Say on."
And Samuel said: — "When thou wast little in thine
own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes
of Israel, and the Lord anointed thee king over Israel?
And the Lord sent thee on a journey, and said. Go and
utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight
against them until they be consumed. Wherefore then
didst thou not obey the voice of the Lord, but didst fly
upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the Lord?"
And Saul said unto Samuel: — "Yea, I have obeyed
the voice of the Lord, and have gone the way which
the Lord sent me, and have brought Agag the king of
Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.
But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the
chief of the things which should have been utterly de-
stroyed, to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in Gilgal."
And Samuel said : — " Hath the Lord as great delight
in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice
XV. 23— xvi. 2] 1. SAMUEL 31
of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is
as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry
and teraphim. Because thou hast rejected the word of
the Lord, He hath also rejected thee from being king."
And Saul said unto Samuel: — " I have sinned: for
I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord,
and thy words : because I feared the people, and obeyed
their voice. Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my
sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the
Lord. " And Samuel said unto Saul : — " I will not return
with thee : for thou hast rejected the word of the Lord,
and the Lord hath rejected thee from being king over
Israel." And as Samuel turned about to go away, he
laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent. And
Samuel said unto him : — " The Lord hath rent the king-
dom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a
neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. And also
the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent : for He is
not a man, that He should repent." Then he said : —
" I have sinned : yet honour me now, I pray thee, before
the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn
again with me, that I may worship the Lord thy God."
So Samuel turned again after Saul ; and Saul wor-
shipped the Lord. Then said Samuel: — "Bring ye
hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites." And
Agag came unto him cheerfully. And Agag said : —
" Surely the bitterness of death is past." And Samuel
said : — " As thy sword hath made women childless, so
shall thy mother be childless among women." And
Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.
Then Samuel went to Ramah ; and Saul went up to
his house to Gibeah of Saul. And Samuel came no
more to see Saul until the day of his death : nevertheless
Samuel mourned for Saul : and the Lord repented that
He had made Saul king over Israel.
And the Lord said unto Samuel : — " How long wilt
thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from
reigning over Israel? fill thine horn with oil, and
go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lehemite : for I
have provided Me a king among his sons." And
Samuel said : — " How can I go? if Saul hear it, he will
32 I. SAMUEL [xvi. 3-16
kill me." And the Lord said :— " Take an heifer with
thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord. And
call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou
shalt do : and thou slialt anoint unto Me him whom I
name unto thee." And Samuel did that which the Lord
spake, and came to Beth-lehem. And the elders of the
town trembled at his coming-, and said : — " Comest thou
peaceably?" And he said : — " Peaceably : I am come to
sacrifice unto the Lord : sanctify yourselves, and come
with me to the sacrifice." And he sanctified Jesse and
his sons, and called them to the sacrifice. And it came
to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab,
and said : — " Surely the Lord's anointed is before Him."
But the Lord said unto Samuel: — " Look not on his
countenance, or on the height of his stature ; because I
have refused him : for the Lord seeth not as man seeth ;
for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the
Lord looketh on the heart." Then Jesse called Abina-
dab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said : —
" Neither hath the Lord chosen this." Then Jesse
made Shammah to pass by. And he said: — " Neither
hath the Lord chosen this." Again, Jesse made seven
of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said
unto Jesse : — " The Lord hath not chosen these. " And
Samuel said unto Jesse : — " Are here all thy children?"
And he said : — " There remaineth yet the youngest, and,
behold, he keepeth the sheep." And Samuel said unto
Jesse : — " Send and fetch him : for we will not sit down
till he come hither." And he sent, and brought him
in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful coun-
tenance, and goodly to look to. And the Lord said : —
" Arise, anoint him : for this is he." Then Samuel took
the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his
brethren : and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David
from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went
to Ramah.
But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and
an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him. And Saul's
servants said unto him: — " Behold now, an evil spirit
from God troubleth thee. Let our lord now command thy
servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man,
who is a cunning player on an harp : and it shall come
xvi. 17— xvii. 8] I. SAMUEL 33
to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that
he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well."
And Saul said unto his servants : — " Provide me now a
man that can play well, and bring him to me." Then
answered one of the servants, and said : — " Behold, I
have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, that is cun-
ningf in playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a man
of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person,
and the Lord is with him." Wherefore Saul sent mes-
sengers unto Jesse, and said : — " Send me David thy
son, which is with the sheep." And Jesse took an ass
laden with bread, and a skin of wine, and a kid, and
sent them by David his son unto Saul. And David
came to Saul, and stood before him : and he loved him
greatly ; and he became his armourbearer. And Saul
sent to Jesse, saying : — " Let David, I pray thee, stand
before me; for he hath found favour in my sight." And
it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon
Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his
hand : so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the
evil spirit departed from him.
Now the Philistines gathered together their armies
to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which
belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Shochoh and
Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. And Saul and the men of
Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley
of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Phi-
listines. And the Philistines stood on a mountain on
the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the
other side : and there was a valley between them. And
there went out a champion out of the camp of the Phi-
listines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six
cubits and a span. And he had an helmet of brass upon
his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail ; and
the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of
brass. And he had greaves of brass upon his legs,
and a target of brass between his shoulders. And the
staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his
spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron : and
one bearing a shield went before him. And he stood
and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto
them : — " Why are ye come out to set your battle in
VOL. II. C
34 I. SAMUEL [xvii. 9-24
array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul?
choose you a man for you, and let him come down to
me. If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me,
then will we be your servants : but if I prevail against
him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and
serve us." And the Philistine said :— " I defy the
armies of Israel this day ; give me a man, that we may
fight together." When Saul and all Israel heard those
words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly
afraid.
Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Beth-
lehem-judah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight
sons : and the man went among men for an old man in
the days of Saul. And the three eldest sons of Jesse
went and followed Saul to the battle : and the names of
his three sons that went to the battle were Eliab the
firstborn, and next unto him Abinadab, and the third
Shammah. And David was the youngest : and the three
eldest followed Saul. But David went and returned
from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Beth-lehem. And
the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and pre-
sented himself forty days. And Jesse said unto David
his son: — "Take now for thy brethren an ephah of
this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and run to the
camp to thy brethren ; and carry these ten cheeses unto
the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren
fare, and take their pledge."
Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, were
in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines. And
David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep
with a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had com-
manded him; and he came to the trench, as the host
was going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battle.
For Israel and the Philistines had put the battle in array,
army against army. And David left his baggage in the
hand of the keeper of the baggage, and ran into the
army, and came and saluted his brethren. And as he
talked with them, behold, there came up the champion,
the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the
armies of the Philistines, and spake according to the
same words : and David heard them. And all the men
of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and
xvii. 25-37] I- SAMUEL 35
were sore afraid. And the men of Israel said :• — ■" Have
ye seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Israel is
he come up : and it shall be, that the man who killeth
him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will
give him his daughter, and make his father's house free
in Israel." And David spake to the men that stood by
him, saying: — "What shall be done to the man that
killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach
from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine,
that he should defy the armies of the living God?" And
the people answered him after this manner, saying: —
" So shall it be done to the man that killeth him."
And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake
unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against
David, and he said : — " Why earnest thou down hither?
and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the
wilderness? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of
thine heart ; for thou art come down that thou mightest
see the battle." And David said : — " What have I now
done? It was merely a word." And he turned from
him toward another, and spake after the same manner :
and the people answered him again after the former
manner. And when the words were heard which David
spake, they rehearsed them before Saul : and he sent
for him.
And David said to Saul : — " Let no man's heart fail
because of him ; thy servant will go and fight with this
Philistine." And Saul said to David : — " Thou art not
able to go against this Philistine to fight with him : for
thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his
youth." And David said unto Saul: — "Thy servant
kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a
bear, and took a lamb out of the flock : and I went out
after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his
mouth : and when he arose against me, I caught him
by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. Thy ser-
vant slew both the lion and the bear : and this uncircum-
cised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath
defied the armies of the living God." David said more-
over : — "The Lord that delivered me out of the paw
of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear. He will
deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine." And Saul
36 I. SAMUEL [xvii. 38-50
said unto David :—" Go, and the Lord be with
thee."
And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put
an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him
with a coat of mail. And David girded his sword upon
his armour, and he assayed to go ; for he had not proved
it. And David said unto Saul:—" I cannot go with
these; for I have not proved them." And David put
them off him. And he took his staff in his hand, and
choose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put
them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip;
and his sUng was in his hand : and he drew near to the
Philistine. And the PhiUstine came on and drew near
unto David ; and the man that bare the shield went be-
fore him. And when the Philistine looked about, and
saw David, he disdained him : for he was but a youth,
and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. And the Phi-
listine said unto David: — "Am I a dog, that thou
comest to me with staves?" And the Philistine cursed
David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David : —
" Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls
of the air, and to the beasts of the field." Then said
David to the Philistine :— " Thou comest to me with a
sword, and with a spear, and with a shield : but I come
to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the
armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will
the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite
thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give
the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto
the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth ;
that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.
And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth
not with sword and spear : for the battle is the Lord's,
and He will give you into our hands."
And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and
came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted,
and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. And
David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone,
and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead,
that the stone sunk into his forehead ; and he fell upon
his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the
Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the
xvii. 51— xviii. 6] I. SAMUEL 37
Philistine, and slew him ; but there was no sword in the
hand of David. Therefore David ran, and stood upon
the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out
of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his
head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their
champion was dead, they fled. And the men of Israel
and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the
Philistines, until thou come to the valley, and to the
gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines
fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and
unto Ekron. And the children of Israel returned from
chasing after the Philistines, and they spoiled their
tents. And David took the head of the Philistine, and
brought it to Jerusalem ; but he put his armour in his
tent.
And when Saul saw David go forth against the Phi-
listine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host: —
" Abner, whose son is this youth?" And Abner said : —
" As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell." And the
king said : — " Enquire thou whose son the stripling is."
And as David returned from the slaughter of the Phi-
listine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul
with the head of the Philistine in his hand. And Saul
said to him : — " Whose son art thou, thou young man?"
And David answered : — " I am the son of thy servant
Jesse the Beth-lehemite. "
And it came to pass, when he had made an end of
speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit
with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his
own soul. And Saul took him that day, and would let
him go no more home to his father's house. Then Jona-
than and David made a covenant, because he loved
him as his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself
of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David,
and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow,
and to his girdle. And David went out whithersoever
Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely : and Saul
set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in
the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of
Saul's servants. And it came to pass as they came,
when David was returned from the slaughter of the
Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of
38 I. SAMUEL [xviii. 7-21
Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with
tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of music. And
the women answered one another as they played, and
said,
" Saul hath slain his thousands.
And David his ten thousands."
And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased
him; and he said: — "They have ascribed unto David
ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thou-
sands : and what can he have more but the kingdom?"
And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.
And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil
spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied
in the midst of the house : and David played with his
hand, as at other times : and there was a javelin in
Saul's hand. And Saul cast the javelin; for he said : —
" I will smite David even to the wall with it." And
David avoided out of his presence twice. And Saul
was afraid of David, because the Lord was with him,
and was departed from Saul. Therefore Saul removed
him from him, and made him his captain over a thou-
sand ; and he went out and came in before the people.
And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways ;
and the Lord was with him. Wherefore when Saul
saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid
of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, because
he went out and came in before them.
And Saul said to David : — " Behold my elder
daughter Merab, her will I give thee to wife : only be
thou valiant for me, and fight the Lord's battles." For
Saul said : — " Let not mine hand be upon him, but let
the hand of the Philistines be upon him." And David
said unto Saul :—" Who am I? and what is my life,
or my father's family in Israel, that I should be son
in law to the king?" But it came to pass at the time
when Merab Saul's daughter should have been given
to David, that she was given unto Adriel the Meho-
lathite to wife. And Michai Saul's daughter loved
David : and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him.
And Saul said : — ** I will give him her, that she may be
a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may
be against him." Wherefore Saul said to David: —
xviii. 22— xix. 4] I. SAMUEL 39
"Thou shalt this day be my son in law a second
time." And Saul commanded his servants, saying: —
" Commune with David secretly, and say. Behold,
the king hath delight in thee, and all his servants
love thee : now therefore be the king's son in law. " And
Saul's servants spake those words in the ears of David.
And David said:—" Seemeth it to you a light thing
to be a king's son in law, seeing that I am a poor man,
and lightly esteemed?" And the servants of Saul told
him, saying: — " On this manner spake David." And
Saul said : — " Thus shall ye say to David, The king
desireth not any dowry, but an hundred foreskins of the
Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies." But
Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the
Philistines. And when his servants told David these
v/ords, it pleased David well to be the king's son in
law : and the days were not expired. Wherefore David
arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Phi-
listines two hundred men ; and David brought their
foreskins, and they gave them in full to the king, that
he might be the king's son in law. And Saul gave him
Michal his daughter to wife. And Saul saw and knew
that the Lord was with David, and that Michal Saul's
daughter loved him. And Saul was yet the more afraid
of David; and Saul became David's enemy continually.
Then the princes of the Philistines went forth : and it
came to pass, after they went forth, that David behaved
himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul ; so
that his name was much set by.
And Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his
servants, that they should kill David. But Jonathan
Saul's son delighted much in David : artd Jonathan
told David, saying: — " Saul my father seeketh to kill
thee : now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself
until the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide
thyself : and I will go out and stand beside my father
in the field where thou art, and I will commune with
my father of thee ; and what I see, that I will tell thee."
And Jonathan spake good of David unto Saul his father,
and said unto him : — " Let not the king sin against his
servant, against David ; because he hath not sinned
against thee, and because his works have been to thee-
40 I. SAMUEL [xix. 5-20
ward very good : for he did put his life in his hand,
and slew the Philistine, and the Lord wrought a great
salvation for all Israel : thou sawest it, and didst re-
joice : wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent
blood, to slay David without a cause?" And Saul
hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan : and Saul sware :
— "As the Lord liveth, he shall not be slain." And
Jonathan called David, and Jonathan shewed him all
those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul,
and he was in his presence, as in times past.
And there was war again : and David went out, and
fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great
slaughter ; and they fled from him. And the evil spirit
from the Lord was upon Saul, as he sat in his house
with his javelin in his hand : and David played with
his hand. And Saul sought to smite David even to
the wall with the javelin ; but he slipped away out of
Saul's presence, and he smote the javelin into the wall :
and David fled, and escaped that night. Saul also sent
messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to
slay him in the morning : and Michal David's wife
told him, saying : — " If thou save not thy life to-night,
to-morrow thou shalt be slain." So Michael let David
down through a window : and he went, and fled, and
escaped. And Michal took the teraphim, and laid it in
the bed, and put a pillow of goats' hair at the head
thereof, and covered it with the clothes. And when
Saul sent messengers to take David, she said : — " He
is sick." And Saul sent the messengers again to see
David, saying : — " Bring him up to me in the bed, that I
may slay him." And when the messengers were come
in, behold, there was the teraphim in the bed^ with a
pillow of goats' hair at the head thereof. And Saul
said unto Michal : — " Why hast thou deceived me so,
and sent away mine enemy, that he is escaped?" And
Michal answered Saul :- — •" He said unto me. Let me
go; why should I kill thee?"
So David fled, and escaped, and came to Samuel to
Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him.
And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth. And it
was told Saul, saying: — " Behold, David is at Naioth
in Ramah." And Saul sent messengers to take David :
xix. 21— XX. 8] I. SAMUEL 41
and when they saw the company of the prophets pro-
phesying-, and Samuel standing as appointed over them,
the Spirit of God was upon the messengers of Saul, and
they also prophesied. And when it was told Saul, he
sent other messengers, and they prophesied likewise.
And Saul sent messengers again the third time, and
they prophesied also. Then went he also to Ramah,
and came to a great well that is in Sechu : and he asked
and said: — "Where are Samuel and David?" And
one said: — "Behold, they be at Naioth in Ramah."
And he went thither to Naioth in Ramah : and the
Spirit of God was upon him also, and he went on, and
prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah. And
he stripped off his clothes also, and prophesied before
Samuel in like manner, and lay down naked all that
day and all that night. Wherefore they say : — " Is
Saul also among the prophets?"
And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and
said before Jonathan : — " What have I done? what is
mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father,
that he seeketh my life?" And he said unto him: —
"God forbid; thou shalt not die: behold, my father
will do nothing either great or small, but that he will
shew it me : and why should my father hide this thing
from me? it is not so." And David sware moreover,
and said : — " Thy father certainly knoweth that I have
found grace in thine eyes ; and he said. Let not Jona-
than know this, lest he be grieved : but truly as the
Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step
between me and death." Then said Jonathan unto
David : — " Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even
do it for thee." And David said unto Jonathan: —
" Behold, to-morrow is the new moon, and I should not
fail to sit with the king at meat : but let me go, that
I may hide myself in the field unto the third day at even.
If thy father at all miss me, then say, David earnestly
asked leave of me that he might run to Beth-lehem his
city : for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the
family. If he say thus. It is well; thy servant shall
have peace : but if he be very wroth, then be sure that
evil is determined by him. Therefore thou shalt deal
kindly with thy servant; for thou hast brought thy
c 2
42 I. SAMUEL [xx. 9-22
servant into a covenant of the Lord with thee : not-
withstanding, if there be in me iniquity, slay me thy-
self; for why shouldest thou bring- me to thy father?"
And Jonathan said: — " Far be it from thee: for if I
knew certainly that evil were determined by my father
to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee?"
Then said David to Jonathan : — " Who shall tell me?
or what if thy father answer thee roughly?" And
Jonathan said unto David : — " Come, and let us go out
into the field." And they went out both of them into
the field. And Jonathan said unto David : — " The Lord
the God of Israel be witness : when I have sounded my
father about this time to-morrow, or the third day,
behold, if there be good toward David, shall I not then
send unto thee and disclose it unto thee? The Lord
do so and much more to Jonathan : but if it please my
father to do thee evil, then I will disclose it to thee,
and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace : and
the Lord be with thee, as He hath been with my father.
And thou shalt not only while yet I live shew me the
kindness of the Lord, that I die not : but also thou
shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever :
no, not when the Lord hath cut off the enemies of
David every one from the face of the earth." So Jona-
than made a covenant with the house of David, saying :
— " Let the Lord even require it at the hand of David's
enemies. " And Jonathan caused David to swear again,
because he loved him : for he loved him as he loved his
own soul.
Then Jonathan said to David: — ^" To-morrow is the
new moon : and thou shalt be missed, because thy seat
will be empty. And when thou hast stayed three days,
then thou shalt go down quickly, and come to the place
where thou didst hide thyself when the business was in
hand, and shalt remain by the stone Ezel. And 1 will
shoot three arrows on the side thereof, as though I shot
at a mark. And, behold, I will send a lad, saying. Go,
find out the arrows. If I expressly say unto the lad,
Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take them;
then come thou : for there Is peace to thee, and no hurt;
as the Lord liveth. But if I say thus unto the young
man. Behold, the arrows are beyond thee ; go thy way :
XX. 23-36] I. SAMUEL 43
for the Lord hath sent thee away. And as touching-
the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold,
the Lord be between thee and me for ever."
So David hid himself in the field : and when the new
moon was come, the king- sat him down to eat meat.
And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even
upon a seat by the wall : and Jonathan arose, and Abner
sat by Saul's side, and David's place was empty.
Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day : for
he thought: — "Something hath befallen him, he is
not clean; surely he is not clean." And it came to pass
on the morrow, which was the second day of the month,
that David's place was empty : and Saul said unto
Jonathan his son: — "Wherefore cometh not the son
of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to-day?" And
Jonathan answered Saul: — "David earnestly asked
leave of me to go to Beth-Iehem : and he said. Let me
go, I pray thee ; for our family hath a sacrifice in the
city; and my brother, he hath commanded me to be
there : and now, if I have found favour in thine eyes,
let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren.
Therefore he cometh not unto the king's table." Then
Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said
unto him : — " Thou son of a perverse rebellious woman,
do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to
thine own confusion, and unto the confusion of thy
mother's nakedness ? For as long as the son of Jesse liveth
upon the ground, thou shalt not be established, nor thy
kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me,
for he shall surely die." And Jonathan answered Saul
his father, and said unto him : — " Wherefore shall he
be slain? what hath he done?" And Saul cast a javelin
at him to smite him : whereby Jonathan knew that it
was determined of his father to slay David. So Jona-
than arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat
no meat the second day of the month : for he was
grieved for David, because his father had done him
shame.
And it came to pass in the morning-, that Jonathan went
out into the field at the time appointed with David, and a
little lad with him. And he said unto his lad : — " Run,
find out now the arrows which I shoot. " And as the lad
44 I. SAMUEL [xx. 37— xxi. 6
ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. And when the lad
was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had
shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said : — "Is
not the arrow beyond thee?" And Jonathan cried after
the lad : — " Make speed, haste, stay not." And Jona-
than's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his
master. But the lad knew not any thing- : only Jona-
than and David knew the matter. And Jonathan gave
his weapons unto his lad, and said unto him: — " Go,
carry them to the city." And as soon as the lad was
gone, David arose out of a place toward the south,
and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself
three times : and they kissed one another, and wept
one with another, until David exceeded. And Jonathan
said to David : — " Go in peace, forasmuch as we have
sworn both of us in the name of the Lord, saying. The
Lord be between me and thee, and between my seed
and thy seed for ever." And he arose and departed:
and Jonathan went into the city.
Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest :
and Ahimelech was afraid at the meeting of David,
and said unto him: — "Why art thou alone, and no
man with thee?" And David said unto Ahimelech the
priest : — " The king hath commanded me a business,
and hath said unto me. Let no man know any thing of
the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have
commanded thee : and I have appointed my servants to
such and such a place. Now therefore what is under
thine hand? give me five loaves of bread in mine hand,
or what there is present." And the priest answered
David, and said : — " There is no common bread under
mine hand, but there is hallowed bread; if the young
men have kept themselves at least from women." And
David answered the priest, and said unto him : — " Of a
truth women have been kept from us about these three
days ; when I came out, the vessels of the young men
were holy, though it was but a common journey ; how
much more then to-day shall their vessels be holy."
So the priest gave him hallowed bread ; for there was
no bread there but the shewbread, that was taken from
before the Lord, to put hot bread in the day when it
was taken away.
xxi. 7— xxii. 4] I. SAMUEL 45
Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there
that day, detained before the Lord ; and his name was
Doeg-, an Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that
belonged to Saul. And David said unto Ahimelech : —
" And is there not here under thine hand spear or
sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my
weapons with me, because the king's business required
haste." And the priest said : — " The sword of Goliath
the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah,
behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod :
if thou wilt take that, take it; for there is no other
save that here." And David said: — "There is none
like that; give it me. "
And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul,
and went to Achish the king of Gath. And the servants
of Achish said unto him : — " Is not this David the king
of the land? did they not sing one to another of him
in dances, saying,
Saul hath slain his thousands,
And David his ten thousands?"
And David laid up these words in his heart, and was
sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. And he
changed his behaviour before them, and feigned him-
self mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of
the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.
Then said Achish unto his servants : — " Lo, ye see the
man is mad : wherefore then have ye brought him to
me? Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought
this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall
this fellow come into my house?"
David therefore departed thence, and escaped to
the cave Adullam : and when his brethren and all his
father's house heard it, they went down thither to him.
And every one that was in distress, and every one that
was in debt, and every one that was discontented,
gathered themselves unto him ; and he became a captain
over them : and there were with him about four hundred
men. And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab :
and he said unto the king of Moab : — " Let my father
and my mother, I pray thee, come forth, and be with
you, till I know what God will do for me." And he
brought them before the king of Moab : and they dwelt
46 I. SAMUEL [xxii. 5-17
with him all the while that David was in the hold. And
the prophet Gad said unto David : — " Abide not in the
hold; depart, and get thee into the land of Judah."
Then David departed, and came into the forest of
Hareth.
When Saul heard that David was discovered, and
the men that were with him, (now Saul abode in Gibeah
under a tree in Ramah, having his spear in his hand,
and all his servants were standing about him ;) then Saul
said unto his servants that stood about him : — " Hear
now, ye Benjamites ; will the son of Jesse give every
one of you fields and vineyards, and make you all cap-
tains of thousands, and captains of hundreds ; that all
of you have conspired against me, and there is none
that sheweth me that my son hath made a league with
the son of Jesse, and there is none of you that is sorry
for me, or sheweth unto me that my son hath stirred
up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this
day?" Then answered Doeg the Edomite, which was
set over the servants of Saul, and said:—" I saw the
son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of
Ahitub. And he enquired of the Lord for him, and
gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath
the Philistine." Then the king sent to call Ahimelech
the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house,
the priests that were in Nob : and they came all of them
to the king. And Saul said: — " Hear now, thou son
of Ahitub." And he answered: — "Here I am, my
lord." And Saul said unto him : — " \Vhy have ye con-
spired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that
thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast en-
quired of God for him, that he should rise against me,
to lie in wait, as at this day?" Then Ahimelech an-
swered the king, and said: — "And who is so faithful
among all thy servants as David, which is the king's
son in law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is honourable
in thine house? Did I then begin to enquire of God
for him ? be it far from me : let not the king impute any
thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father :
for thy servant knew nothing of all this, less or more."
And the king said : — " Thou shalt surely die, Ahime-
lech, thou, and all thy father's house." And the
xxii. i8— xxiii. 7] I. SAMUEL 47
king- said unto the footmen that stood about him : —
"Turn, and slay the priests of the Lord; because
their hand also is with David, and because they
knew when he fled, and did not shew it to me." But
the servants of the kingf would not put forth their hand
to fall upon the priests of the Lord. And the king said
to Doeg- : — "Turn thou, and fall upon the priests."
And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the
priests, and slew on that day fourscore and five persons
that did wear a linen ephod. And Nob, the city of the
priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men
and women, children and suckling-s, and oxen, and
asses, and sheep, with the edge of the sword. And one
of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named
Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David. And Abiathar
shewed David that Saul had slain the Lord's priests.
And David said unto Abiathar : — " I knew it that day,
when Doeg" the Edomite was there, that he would surely
tell Saul : I have occasioned the death of all the persons
of thy father's house. Abide thou with me, fear not :
for he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life : but with
me thou shalt be in safeguard."
Then they told David, saying : — " Behold, the Philis-
tines fight against Keilah, and they rob the threshing-
floors." Therefore David enquired of the Lord, saying :
— " Shall I go and smite these Philistines?" And the
Lord said unto David : — " Go, and smite the Philistines,
and save Keilah." And David's men said unto him : —
" Behold, we be afraid here in Judah : how much more
then if we come to Keilah against the armies of the
Philistines?" Then David enquired of the Lord yet
again. And the Lord answered him and said : — " Arise,
go down to Keilah ; for I will deliver the Philistines
into thine hand." So David and his men went to
Keilah, and fought with the Philistines, and brought
away their cattle, and smote them with a great
slaughter. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.
And it came to pass, when Abiathar the son of Ahime-
lech fled to David to Keilah, that he came down with
an ephod in his hand. And it was told Saul that David
vv^as come to Keilah. And Saul said : — " God hath
delivered him into mine hand ; for he is shut in by
48 I. SAMUEL [xxiii. 8-22
entering into a town that hath gates and bars." And
Saul called all the people together to war, to go down
to Keilah, to besiege David and his men. And David
knew that Saul secretly practised mischief against him ;
and he said to Abiathar the priest : — " Bring hither the
ephod." Then said David: — " O Lord God of Israel,
Thy servant hath certainly heard that Saul seeketh to
come to Keilah, to destroy the city for my sake. Will
the men of Keilah deliver me up into his hand? will
Saul come down, as Thy servant hath heard? O Lord
God of Israel, I beseech Thee, tell Thy servant." And
the Lord said: — "He will come down." Then said
David : — " Will the men of Keilah deliver me and my
men into the hand of Saul?" And the Lord said : —
" They will deliver thee up." Then David and his men,
which were about six hundred, arose and departed out
of Keilah, and went whithersoever they could go. And
it was told Saul that David was escaped from Keilah ;
and he forbare to go forth.
And David abode in the wilderness in strong holds,
and remained in a mountain in the wilderness of Ziph.
And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him
not into his hand. And David saw that Saul was
come out to seek his life : and David was in the wilder-
ness of Ziph in a wood. And Jonathan Saul's son
arose, and went to David into the wood, and
strengthened his hand in God. And he said unto him :
— " Fear not : for the hand of Saul my father shall not
find thee; and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I
shall be next unto thee ; and that also Saul my father
knoweth. " And they two made a covenant before the
Lord : and David abode in the wood, and Jonathan
went to his house.
Then came up the Ziphites to Saul to Gibeah, saying :
— " Doth not David hide himself with us in strong
holds in the wood, in the hill of Hachilah, which is on
the south of Jeshimon? Now therefore, O king, come
down according to all the desire of thy soul to come
down; and our part shall be to deliver him into the
king's hand." And Saul said: — "Blessed be ye of
the Lord ; for ye have compassion on me. Go, I pray
you, prepare yet, and know and see his place where his
xxiii. 23 — xxiv. 6] I. SAMUEL 49
haunt is, and who hath seen him there : for it is told
me that he dealeth very subtilly. See therefore, and
take knowledge of all the lurking- places where he
hideth himself, and come ye again to me with the cer-
tainty, and I will go with you : and it shall come to
pass, if he be in the land, that I will search him out
throughout all the thousands of Judah. " And they
arose, and went to Ziph before Saul : but David and his
men were in the wilderness of Maon, in the plain on
the south of Jeshimon. Saul also and his men went to
seek him. And they told David : wherefore he came
down into a rock, and abode in the wilderness of Maon.
And when Saul heard that, he pursued after David in
the wilderness of Maon. And Saul went on this side of
the mountain, and David and his men on that side of
the mountain : and David made haste to get away for
fear of Saul ; for Saul and his men compassed David
and his men round about to take them. But there came
a messenger unto Saul, saying: — "Haste thee, and
come; for the Philistines have invaded the land."
Wherefore Saul returned from pursuing after David,
and went against the Philistines : therefore they called
that place Sela-hammahlekoth.
And David went up from thence, and dwelt in strong
holds at En-gedi. And it came to pass, when Saul was
returned from following the Philistines, that it was told
him, saying:—" Behold, David is in the wilderness of
En-gcdi. " Then Saul took three thousand chosen men
out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men
upon the rocks of the wild goats. And he came to the
sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul
went in to cover his feet : and David and his men re-
mained in the sides of the cave. And the men of David
said unto him : — " Behold the day of which the Lord
said unto thee. Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into
thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem
good unto thee." Then David arose, and cut off the
skirt of Saul's robe privily. And it came to pass after-
ward, that David's heart smote him, because he had cut
off Saul's skirt. And he said unto his men: — "The
Lord forbid that I should do this thing unto my master,
the Lord's anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against
50 I. SAMUEL [xxiv. 7-20
him, seeing- he is the anointed of the Lord." So David
stayed his servants with these words, and suffered them
not to rise against Saul. But Saul rose up out of the
cave, and went on his way. David also arose after-
ward, and went out of the cave, and cried after Saul,
saying : — " My lord the king." And when Saul looked
behind him, David stooped with his face to the earth,
and bowed himself.
And David said to Saul : — " Wherefore hearest thou
men's words, saying, Behold, David seeketh thy hurt?
Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that the Lord
had delivered thee to-day into mine hand in the cave :
and some bade me kill thee : but mine eye spared thee ;
and I said, I will not put forth mine hand against my
lord; for he is the Lord's anointed. Moreover, my
father, see, yea, see the skirt of thy robe in my hand :
for in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe, and killed thee
not, know thou and see that there is neither evil nor
transgression in mine hand, and I have not sinned
against thee ; yet thou huntest my soul to take it. The
Lord judge between me and thee, and the Lord avenge
me of thee : but mine hand shall not be upon thee. As
saith the proverb of the ancients, Wickedness pro-
ceedeth from the wicked : but mine hand shall not be
upon thee. After whom is the king of Israel come out?
after whom dost thou pursue? after a dead dog, after a
flea. The Lord therefore be judge, and judge between
me and thee, and see, and plead my cause, and deliver
me out of thine hand."
And it came to pass, when David had made an end
of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said : —
" Is this thy voice, my son David?" And Saul lifted
up his voice, and wept. And he said to David : —
" Thou art more righteous than I : for thou hast re-
warded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil.
And thou hast shewed this day how that thou hast dealt
well with me : forasmuch as when the Lord had de-
livered me into thine hand, thou killedst me not. For
if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away?
wherefore the Lord reward thee good for that thou hast
done unto me this day. And now, behold, I know well
that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of
xxiv. 21— XXV. 12] I. SAMUEL 51
Israel shall be established in thine hand. Swear now
therefore unto me by the Lord, that thou wilt not cut
off my seed after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my
name out of my father's house." And David sware
unto Saul. And Saul went home; but David and his
men gat them up unto the hold.
And Samuel died ; and all the Israelites were gathered
together, and lamented him, and buried him in his house
at Ramah.
And David arose, and went down to the wilderness of
Paran. And there was a man in Maon, whose posses-
sions were in Carmel ; and the man was very great,
and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats :
and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. Now the
name of the man was Nabal ; and the name of his wife
Abigail : and she was a woman of good understanding,
and of a beautiful countenance : but the man was
churlish and evil in his doings ; and he was of the house
of Caleb. And David heard in the wilderness that
Nabal did shear his sheep. And David sent out ten
young men, and David said unto the young men : —
" Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet
him in my name : and thus shall ye say to him that
liveth in prosperity. Peace be both to thee, and peace
be to thine house, and peace be unto all that thou hast.
And now I have heard that thou hast shearers : now thy
shepherds which were with us, we hurt them not, neither
was there ought missing unto them, all the while they
were in Carmel. Ask thy young men, and they will
shew thee. Wherefore let the young men find favour
in thine eyes : for we come in a good day : give, I pray
thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand unto thy servants,
and to thy son David."
And when David's young men came, they spake to
Nabal according to all those words in the name of
David, and ceased. And Nabal answered David's serv-
ants, and said: — "Who is David? and who is the
son of Jesse? there be many servants now a days that
break away every man from his master. Shall I then
take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have
killed for my shearers, and give it unto men, whom
I know not whence they be?" So David's young men
52 I. SAMUEL [xxv. 13-25
turned their way, and went again, and came and told
him all those sayings. And David said unto his men : —
" Gird ye on every man his sword." And they girded
on every man his sword ; and David also girded on his
sword : and there went up after David about four hun-
dred men ; and two hundred abode by the stuff.
But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife,
saying: — " Behold, David sent messengers out of the
wilderness to salute our master ; and he railed on them.
But the men were very good unto us, and we were not
hurt, neither missed we any thing, as long as we were
conversant with them, when we were in the fields :
they were a wall unto us both by night and day, all the
while we were with them keeping the sheep. Now
therefore know and consider what thou wilt do ; for evil
is determined against our master, and against all his
household : for he is such a son of Belial, that a man
cannot speak to him." Then Abigail made haste, and
took two hundred loaves, and two skins of wine, and
five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched
corn, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two hun-
dred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses. And she
said unto her servants : — " Go on before me; behold,
I come after you." But she told not her husband
Nabal. And it was so, as she rode on the ass, that she
came down by the covert of the hill, and, behold, David
and his men came down against her; and she met them.
Now David had said : — ■" Surely in vain have I kept all
that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing
was missed of all that pertained unto him : and he hath
requited me evil for good. So and more also do God
unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain
to him by the morning light so much as one man child."
And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and lighted
off the ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed
herself to the ground, and fell at his feet, and said : —
" Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be : and
let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine audience,
and hear the words of thine handmaid. Let not my
lord, I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal :
for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and
folly is with him : but I thine handmaid saw not the
XXV. 26-37] I- SAMUEL 53
young- men of my lord, whom thou didst send. Now
therefore, my lord, as the Lord liveth, and as thy soul
liveth, seeing the Lord hath withholden thee from
coming- to shed blood, and from avenging thyself with
thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and they that
seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. And now this bless-
ing which thine handmaid hath brought unto my lord,
let it even be given unto the young men that follow my
lord. I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine hand-
maid : for the Lord will certainly make my lord a sure
house; because my lord fighteth the battles of the Lord,
and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days. Yet
a man is risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul : but
the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life
with the Lord thy God ; and the souls of thine enemies,
them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling.
And it shall come to pass, when the Lord shall have
done to my lord according to all the good that He hath
spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee
ruler over Israel ; that this shall be no grief unto thee,
nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast
shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged
himself : but when the Lord shall have dealt well with
my lord, then remember thine handmaid."
And David said to Abigail : — " Blessed be the Lord
God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me :
and blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which
hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and
from avenging myself with mine own hand. For in
very deed, as the Lord God of Israel liveth, which hath
kept me back from hurting thee, except thou hadst
hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been
left unto Nabal by the morning light so much as one
man child." So David received of her hand that which
she had brought him, and said unto her: — " Go up in
peace to thine house ; see, I have hearkened to thy voice,
and have accepted thy person."
And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held
a feast in his house, like the feast of a king ; and
Nabal 's heart was merry within him, for he was very
drunken : wherefore she told him nothing, less or more,
until the morning light. But it came to pass in the
54 1. SAMUEL [xxv. 38— xxvi. 6
morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, and
his wife had told him these things, that his heart died
within him, and he became as a stone. And it came to
pass about ten days after, that the Lord smote Nabal,
that he died. , , 1 -j
And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said :
'« Blessed be the Lord, that hath pleaded the cause of
my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept His
servant from evil : for the Lord hath returned the
wickedness of Nabal upon his own head." And David
sent and communed with Abigail, to take her to him to
wife. And when the servants of David were come to
Abigail to Carmel, they spake unto her, saying:—
" David sent us unto thee, to take thee to him to wife."
And she arose, and bowed herself on her face to the
earth, and said: — "Behold, let thine handmaid be a
servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord."
And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode upon an ass,
with five'^ damsels of hers that went after her ; and she
went after the messengers of David, and became his
wife. David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel ; and they
were also both of them his wives. But Saul had given
Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Phalti the son of
Laish, which was of Gallim.
And the Ziphites came unto Saul to Gibeah, saying:
" Doth not David hide himself in the hill of Hachilah,
which is before Jeshimon?" Then Saul arose, and
went down to the wilderness of Ziph, having three
thousand chosen men of Israel with him, to seek David
in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul pitched in the
hill of Hachilah, which is before Jeshimon, by the way.
But David abode in the wilderness, and he saw that
Saul came after him into the wilderness. David there-
fore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was come
in very deed. And David arose, and came to the place
where Saul had pitched : and David beheld the place
where Saul lay, and Abner the son of Ner, the captain
of his host : and Saul lay in the trench, and the people
pitched round about him.
Then answered David and said to Ahimelech the
Hittite, and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah, brother to
Joab, saying: — "Who will go down with me to Saul
xxvi. 7-19] I. SAMUEL 55
to the camp?" And Abishai said: — " I will go down
with thee." So David and Abishai came to the people
by nig-ht : and, behold Saul lay sleeping within the
trench, and his spear stuck in the ground at his bolster :
but Abner and the people lay round about him. Then
said Abishai to David: — "God hath delivered thine
enemy into thine hand this day : now therefore let me
smite him, I pray thee, with the spear even to the earth
at once, and I will not smite him the second time."
And David said to Abishai: — "Destroy him not: for
who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord's
anointed, and be guiltless?" David said furthermore:
"As the Lord liveth, the Lord shall smite him; or
his day shall come to die ; or he shall descend into
battle, and perish. The Lord forbid that I should
stretch forth mine hand against the Lord's anointed :
but, I pray thee, take thou now the spear that is at his
bolster, and the cruse of water, and let us go." So
David took the spear and the cruse of water from Saul's
bolster ; and they gat them away, and no man saw it,
nor knew it, neither awaked : for they were all asleep ;
because a deep sleep from the Lord was fallen upon
them.
Then David went over to the other side, and stood
on the top of an hill afar off; a great space being be-
tween them : and David cried to the people, and to
Abner the son of Ner, saying : — " Answerest thou not,
Abner?" Then Abner answered and said :—" Who
art thou that criest to the king?" And David said to
Abner : — " Art not thou a valiant man? and who is like
to thee in Israel? wherefore then hast thou not kept
thy lord the king? for there came one of the people in
to destroy the king thy lord. This thing is not good that
thou hast done. As the Lord liveth, ye are worthy to
die, because ye have not kept your master, the Lord's
anointed. And now see where the king's spear is, and
the cruse of water that was at his bolster." And Saul
knew David's voice, and said : — " Is this thy voice,
my son David?" And David said: — " It is my voice,
my lord, O king." And he said: — "Wherefore doth
my lord thus pursue after his servant? for what have I
done? or what evil is in mine hand? Now therefore, I
56 I. SAMUEL [xxvi. 20— xxvii. 5
pray thee, let my lord the king- hear the words of his
servant. If the Lord have stirred thee up against me,
let Him accept an offering- : but if they be the children
of men, cursed be they before the Lord ; for they have
driven me out this day from abiding- in the inheritance
of the Lord, saying. Go, serve other gods. Now there-
fore, let not my blood fall to the earth before the face
of the Lord : for the king of Israel is come out to seek a
flea, as when one doth hunt a partridge in the moun-
tains."
Then said Saul:—" I have sinned: return, my son
David : for I will no more do thee harm, because my
soul was precious in thine eyes this day : behold, I have
played the fool, and have erred exceedingly." And
David answered and said : — " Behold the king's spear !
and let one of the young men come over and fetch it.
The Lord render to every man his righteousness and his
faithfulness : for the Lord delivered thee into my hand
to-day, but I would not stretch forth mine hand against
the Lord's anointed. And, behold, as thy life was
much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be
much set by in the eyes of the Lord, and let Him deliver
me out of all tribulation." Then Saul said to David :
— "Blessed be thou, my son David: thou shalt both
do great things, and also shalt still prevail." So
David went on his way, and Saul returned to his place.
And David said in his heart: — " I shall now perish
one day by the hand of Saul : there is nothing better
for me than that I should speedily escape into the land
of the Philistines ; and Saul shall despair of me, to seek
me any more in any coast of Israel : so shall I escape
out of his hand." And David arose, and he passed
over with the six hundred men that were with him unto
Achish, the son of Maoch, king of Gath. And David
dwelt with Achish at Gath, he and his men, every man
with his household, even David with his two wives,
Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the Carmelitess,
Nabal's wife. And it was told Saul that David was fled
to Gath : and he sought no more again for him.
And David said unto Achish : — " If I have now found
grace in thine eyes, let them give me a place in some
town in the country, that I may dwell there : for why
xxvii. 6— xxviii. 7] I. SAMUEL 57
should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee?"
Then Achish gave him Ziklag- that day : wherefore
Ziklag- pertaineth unto the kings of Judah unto this
day. And the time that David dwelt in the country of
the Philistines was a full year and four months. And
David and his men went up, and invaded the Geshur-
ites, and the Gezrites, and the Amalekites : for those
nations were the inhabitants of the land, which were
of old, as thou goest to Shur, even unto the land of
Egypt. And David smote the land, and left neither
man nor v/oman alive, and took away the sheep, and the
oxen, and the asses, and the camels, and the apparel,
and returned, and came to Achish. And Achish said :
— " Whither have ye made a road to-day?" And David
said: — "Against the south of Judah, and against the
south of the Jerahmeelites, and against the south of the
Kenites." And David saved neither man nor woman
alive, to bring tidings to Oath, saying: — "Lest they
should tell on us, saying. So did David, and so will be
his manner all the while he dwelleth in the country of
the Philistines." And Achish believed David, saying:
— " He hath made his people Israel utterly to abhor
him; therefore he shall be my servant for ever."
And it came to pass in those days, that the Philistines
gathered their armies together for warfare, to fight
with Israel. And Achish said unto David : — " Know
thou assuredly, that thou shalt go out with me to battle,
thou and thy men." And David said to Achish: — -
"Surely thou shalt know what thy servant can do."
And Achish said to David : — " Therefore will I make
thee keeper of mine head for ever."
Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented
him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city.
And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits,
and the wizards, out of the land. And the Philistines
gathered themselves together, and came and pitched
in Shunem : and Saul gathered all Israel together, and
they pitched in Gilboa. And when Saul saw the host
of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart greatly
trembled. And when Saul enquired of the Lord, the
Lord answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by
Urim, nor by prophets. Then said Saul unto his serv-
58 I. SAMUEL [xxviii. 8-18
ants : — " Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit,
that I may go to her, and enquire of her." And his
servants said to him : — " Behold, there is a woman that
hath a familiar spirit at En-dor." And Saul disg-uised
himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and
two men with him, and they came to the woman by
night: and he said: — " I pray thee, divine unto me
by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I
shall name unto thee." And the woman said unto
him : — " Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done,
how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and
the wizards, out of the land : wherefore then layest thou
a snare for my life, to cause me to die?" And Saul
sware to her by the Lord, saying: — "As the Lord
liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this
thing." Then said the woman: — "Whom shall I
bring up unto thee?" And he said : — " Bring me up
Samuel." And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried
with a loud voice : and the woman spake to Saul, say-
ing : — "Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art
Saul." And the king said unto her : — " Be not afraid :
for what sawest thou?" And the woman said unto
Saul : — " I saw gods ascending out of the earth. " And
he said unto her: — " What form is he of?" And she
said: — "An old man cometh up; and he is covered
with a mantle." And Saul perceived that it was
Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground,
and bowed himself.
And Samuel said to Saul : — " Why hast thou dis-
quieted me, to bring me up?" And Saul answered : —
"I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war
against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth
me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams : there-
fore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known
unto me what I shall do." Then said Samuel: —
" Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the Lord
is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy?
And the Lord hath done to him, as He spake by me : for
the Lord hath rent the kingdom out of thine hand, and
given it to thy neighbour, even to David : because thou
obeyedst not the voice of the Lord, nor executedst His
fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath the Lord done
xxviii. 19— xxix. 4] I. SAMUEL 59
this thing unto thee this day. Moreover the Lord will
also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philis-
tines : and to-morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with
me : the Lord also shall deliver the host of Israel into
the hand of the Philistines."
Then Saul fell straightway all along on the earth, and
was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel : and
there was no strength in him ; for he had eaten no bread
all the day, nor all the night. And the woman came
unto Saul, and saw that he was sore troubled, and said
unto him : — " Behold, thine handmaid hath obeyed thy
voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have
hearkened unto thy words which thou spakest unto me.
Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also unto the
voice of thine handmaid, and let me set a morsel of
bread before thee ; and eat, that thou mayest have
strength, when thou goest on thy way." But he re-
fused, and said : — " I will not eat." But his servants,
together with the woman, compelled him; and he
hearkened unto their voice. So he arose from the
earth, and sat upon the bed. And the woman had a fat
calf in the house; and she hasted, and killed it, and
took flour, and kneaded it, and did bake unleavened
bread thereof : and she brought it before Saul, and
before his servants ; and they did eat. Then they rose
up, and went away that night.
Now the Philistines gathered together all their armies
to Aphek : and the Israelites pitched by a fountain which
is in Jezreel. And the lords of the Philistines passed
on by hundreds, and by thousands : but David and his
men passed on in the rearward with Achish. Then said
the princes of the Philistines : — " What do these He-
brews here?" And Achish said unto the princes of the
Philistines: — " Is not this David, the servant of Saul
the king of Israel, which hath been with me these days,
or these years, and I have found no fault in him since
he fell away unto me unto this day?" And the princes
of the Philistines were wroth with him ; and the princes
of the Philistines said unto him: — "Make this fellow
return, that he may go again to his place which thou
hast appointed him, and let him not go down with us
to battle, lest in the battle he be an adversary to us:
6o I. SAMUEL [xxix. 5— xxx. 6
for wherewith should he reconcile himself unto his
master? should it not be with the heads of these men?
Is not this David, of whom they sang one to another
in dances, saying",
" Saul slew his thousands,
And David his ten thousands?"
Then Achish called David, and said unto him : —
" Surely, as the Lord liveth, thou hast been upright,
and thy going out and thy coming in with me in the
host is good in my sight : for I have not found evil in
thee since the day of thy coming unto me unto this day :
nevertheless the lords favour thee not. Wherefore now
return, and go in peace, that thou displease not the
lords of the Philistines." And David said unto Achish :
— " But what have I done? and what hast thou found
in thy servant so long as I have been with thee unto
this day, that I may not go and fight against the enemies
of my lord the king?" And Achish answered and said
to David : — " I know that thou art good in my sight,
as an angel of God : notwithstanding the princes of the
Philistines have said. He shall not go up with us to the
battle. Wherefore now rise up early in the morning
with thy master's servants that are come with thee : and
as soon as ye be up early in the morning, and have light,
depart." So David and his men rose up early to depart
in the morning, to return into the land of the Philistines.
And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.
And it came to pass, when David and his men were
come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites
had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag,
and burned it with fire ; and had taken the women cap-
tives, that were therein : they slew not any, either great
or small, but carried them away, and went on their
way. So David and his men came to the city, and,
behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and
their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives.
Then David and the people that were with him
lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no
more power to weep. And David's two wives were
taken captives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail
the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. And David was
greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him,
XXX. 7-i8] I. SAMUEL 6i
because the soul of all the people was grieved, every
man for his sons and for his daughters : but David
encourag-ed himself in the Lord his God. And David
said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech's son : — " I pray
thee, bring- me hither the ephod. " And Abiathar
brought thither the ephod to David. And David en-
quired of the Lord, saying :—" Shall I pursue after
this troop? shall I overtake them?" And He answered
him : — " Pursue : for thou shalt surely overtake them,
and without fail recover all." So David went, he and
the six hundred men that were with him, and came to
the brook Besor, where those that were left behind
stayed. But David pursued, he and four hundred men :
for two hundred abode behind, which were so faint that
they could not go over the brook Besor. And they
found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to
David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they
made him drink water; and they gave him a piece of
a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins : and when he
had eaten, his spirit came again to him : for he had
eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and
three nights. And David said unto him : — " To whom
belongest thou? and whence art thou?" And he said :
— " I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalek-
ite; and my master left me, because three days agone
I fell sick. We made an invasion upon the south of
the Cherethites, and upon the coast which belongeth to
Judah, and upon the south of Caleb; and we burned
Ziklag with fire." And David said to him: — "Canst
thou bring me down to this company?" And he said :
— " Swear unto me by God, that thou wilt neither kill
me, nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I
Vv^ill bring thee down to this company."
And when he had brought him down, behold, they
were spread abroad upon all the earth, eating and drink-
ing, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that
they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and
out of the land of Judah. And David smote them from
the twilight even unto the evening of the next day : and
there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred
young men, which rode upon camels, and fled. And
David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried
62 I. SAMUEL [xxx. 19— xxxi. i
away : and David rescued his two wives. And there
was nothing- lacking to them, neither small nor great,
neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor any thing
that they had taken to them : David recovered all. And
David took all the flocks and the herds, which they
drave before those other cattle, and said: — "This is
David's spoil."
And David came to the two hundred men, which were
so faint that they could not follow David, whom they
had made also to abide at the brook Besor : and they
went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that
were with him : and when David came near to the
people, he saluted them. Then answered all the wicked
men and men of Belial, of those that went with David,
and said: — " Because they went not with us, we will
not give them ought of the spoil that we have recovered,
save to every man his wife and his children, that they
may lead them away, and depart." Then said David :
— " Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which
the Lord hath given us, who hath preserved us, and
delivered the company that came against us into our
hand. For who will hearken unto you in this matter?
but as his part is that goeth down to the battle, so
shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff : they shall
part alike." And it was so from that day forward,
that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel
unto this day.
And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil
unto the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying :■ —
" Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies
of the Lord :" to them which were in Beth-el, and to
them which were in south Ramoth, and to them which
were in Jattir, and to them which were in Aroer, and to
them which were in Siphmoth, and to them which were
in Eshtemoa, and to them which were in Racal, and to
them which were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and
to them which were in the cities of the Kenites, and to
them which were in Hormah, and to them which were in
Chor-ashan, and to them which were in Athach, and to
them which were in Hebron, and to all the places where
David himself and his men were wont to haunt.
Now the Philistines fought against Israel : and the
xxxi. 2-13] I. SAMUEL 63
men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell
down slain in mount Gilboa. And the Philistines
followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons; and the
Philistines slew Jonathan and Abinadab, and Melchi-
shua, Saul's sons. And the battle went sore against
Saul, and the archers hit him ; and he was sore wounded
of the archers. Then said Saul unto his armourbearer :
— " Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith :
lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through,
and abuse me. " But his armourbearer would not ; for
he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword, and
fell upon it. And when his armourbearer saw that Saul
was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with
him. So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armour-
bearer, and all his men, that same day together.
And when the men of Israel that were on the other
side of the valley, and they that were on the other side
Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul
and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities, and
fled ; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. And
it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines
came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his
three sons fallen in mount Gilboa. And they cut off his
head, and stripped off his armour, and sent into the land
of the Philistines round about, to publish it in the house
of their idols, and among the people. And they put his
armour in the house of the Ashtaroth : and they fastened
his body to the wall of Beth-shan. And when the in-
habitants of Jabesh-gilead heard of that which the
Philistines had done to Saul ; all the valiant men arose,
and went all night, and took the body of Saul and the
bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and came
to Jabesh, and burnt them there. And they took their
bones, and buried them under a tree at Jabesh, and
fasted seven days.
THE SECOND BOOK OF SAMUEL
Now it came to pass after the death of Samuel, when
David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalek-
ites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag; it came
even to pass on the third day, that, behold, a man came
out of the camp from Saul with his clothes rent, and
earth upon his head : and so it was, when he came to
David, that he fell to the earth, and did obeisance. And
David said unto him : — " From whence comest thou?"
And he said unto him : — " Out of the camp of Israel
am I escaped." And David said unto him: — "How
went the matter? I pray thee, tell me." And he
answered : — " That the people are fled from the battle,
and many of the people also are fallen and dead ; and
Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also." And David
said unto the young man that told him : — " How know«
est thou that Saul and Jonathan his son be dead?" And
the young man that told him said: — " As I happened
by chance upon mount Gilboa, behold, Saul leaned upon
his spear; and, lo, the chariots and horsemen followed
hard after him. And when he looked behind him, he
saw me, and called unto me. And I answered, Here
am I. And he said unto me. Who art thou? And I
answered him, I am an Amalekite. He said unto me
again. Stand, I pray thee, upon me, and slay me : for
anguish is come upon me, because my life is yet whole
in me. So I stood upon him, and slew him, because I
was sure that he could not live after that he was fallen :
and I took the crown that was upon his head, and the
bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them
hither unto my lord." Then David took hold on his
clothes, and rent them ; and likewise all the men that
were with him : and they mourned, and wept, and fasted
until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for
the people of the Lord, and for the house of Israel ;
because they were fallen by the sword.
And David said unto the young man that told him : —
64
i. 14-25] II. SAMUEL 65
" Whence art thou?" And he answered :— " 1 am the
son of a stranger, an Amalekite. " And David said
unto him :- — " How wast thou not afraid to stretch forth
thine hand to destroy the Lord's anointed?" And
David called one of the young men, and said : — " Go
near, and fall upon him." And he smote him that he
died. And David said unto him : — " Thy blood be upon
thy head ; for thy mouth hath testified against thee, say-
ing, I have slain the Lord's anointed."
And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul
and over Jonathan his son : also he bade them teach
the children of Judah the Song of the Bow : behold it
is written in the Book of Jasher.
Thy glory, O Israel, is slain upon thy high
places !
How are the mighty fallen !
Tell it not in Gath,
Publish it not in the streets of Askelon ;
Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice,
Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.
Ye mountains of Gilboa,
Let there be no dew, neither let there be rain,
upon you, nor fields of offerings :
For there the shield of the mighty is vilely cast
away.
The shield of Saul, as though he had not been
anointed with oil.
From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the
mighty.
The bow of Jonathan turned not back,
And the sword of Saul returned not empty.
Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in
their lives.
And in their death they were not divided :
They were swifter than eagles.
They were stronger than lions.
Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,
Who clothed you in scarlet, with other delights.
Who put on ornaments of gold upon your
apparel.
How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the
battle !
VOL. II. r>
66 II. SAMUEL [i. 26— ii. 12
0 Jonathan, thou wast slain in thine high places.
1 am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan :
Very pleasant hast thou been unto me :
Thy love to me was wonderful,
Passing the love of women.
How are the mighty fallen,
And the weapons of war perished !
And it came to pass after this, that David enquired
of the Lord, saying : — " Shall I go up into any of the
cities of Judah?" And the Lord said unto him : — " Go
up." And David said: — "Whither shall I go up?"
And He said: — " Unto Hebron." So David went up
thither, and his two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreel-
itess, and Abigail Nabal's wife the Carmelite. And his
men that were with him did David bring up, every man
with his household : and they dwelt in the cities of
Hebron. And the men of Judah came, and there they
anointed David king over the house of Judah. And
they told David, saying : — " The men of Jabesh-gilead
were they that buried Saul."
And David sent messengers unto the men of Jabesh-
gilead, and said unto them: — " Blessed be ye of the
Lord, that ye have shewed this kindness unto your lord,
even unto Saul, and have buried him. And now the
Lord shew kindness and truth unto you : and I also will
requite you this kindness, because ye have done this
thing. Therefore now let your hands be strengthened,
and be ye valiant : for your master Saul is dead, and
also the house of Judah have anointed me king over
them."
But Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul's host, took
Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and brought him over to
Mahanaim ; and made him king over Gilead, and over
the Ashurites, and over Jezreel, and over Ephraim, and
over Benjamin, and over all Israel. Ish-bosheth Saul's
son was forty years old when he began to reign over
Israel, and reigned two years. But the house of Judah
followed David. And the time that David was king in
Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and
six months.
And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ish-
bosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to
ii. 13-26] II. SAMUEL 67
Gibeoii. And Joab the son of Zeruiah, and the servants
of David, went out, and met together by the pool of
Gibeon : and they sat down, the one on the one side of
the pool, and the other on the other side of the pool.
And Abner said to Joab: — " Let the young men now
arise, and play before us." And Joab said: — "Let
them arise." Then there arose and went over by
number twelve of Benjamin, which pertained to Ish-
bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of
David. And they caught every one his fellow by the
head, and thrust his sword in his fellow's side; so they
fell down together : wherefore that place was called
Helkath-hazzurim, which is in Gibeon. And there was
a very sore battle that day ; and Abner was beaten, and
the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
And there were three sons of Zeruiah there, Joab, and
Abishai, and Asahel : and Asahel was as light of foot
as a wild roe. And Asahel pursued after Abner ; and
in going he turned not to the right hand nor to the left
from following Abner. Then Abner looked behind him,
and said :— " Art thou Asahel?" And he answered : —
" I am." And Abner said to him : — -" Turn thee aside
to thy right hand or to thy left, and lay thee hold on one
of the young men, and take thee his armour." But
Asahel v/ould not turn aside from following of him. And
Abner said again to Asahel: — "Turn thee aside from
following me : wherefore should I smite thee to the
ground? how then should I hold up my face to Joab
thy brother?" Howbeit he refused to turn aside:
wherefore Abner with the hinder end of the spear smote
him under the fifth rib, that the spear came out behind
him ; and he fell down there, and died in the same place :
and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place
where Asahel fell down and died stood still. Joab also
and Abishai pursued after Abner : and the sun went
down when they were come to the hill of Ammah, that
lieth before Giah by the way of the wilderness of Gibeon.
And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves to-
gether after Abner, and became one band, and stood on
the top of an hill. Then Abner called to Joab, and
said : — " Shall the sword devour for ever? knowest thou
not that it will be bitterness in the latter end? how long
68 II. SAMUEL [ii. 27— iii. 8
shall it be then, ere thou bid the people return from
following their brethren?" And Joab said : — "As God
liveth, unless thou hadst spoken, surely then in the
morning the people had gone up every one from follow-
ing his brother." So Joab blew a trumpet, and all the
people stood still, and pursued after Israel no more,
neither fought they any more. And Abner and his men
walked all that night through the plain, and passed over
Jordan, and went through all Bithron, and they came
to Mahanaim. And Joab returned from following
Abner : and when he had gathered all the people to-
gether, there lacked of David's servants nineteen men
and Asahel. But the servants of David had smitten of
Benjamin, and of Abner's men, so that three hundred
and threescore men died. And they took up Asahel,
and buried him in the sepulchre of his father, which
was in Beth-lehem. And Joab and his men went all
night, and they came to Hebron at break of day.
Now there was long war between the house of Saul
and the house of David : but David waxed stronger
and stronger, and the house of Saul waxed weaker and
weaker.
And unto David were sons born in Hebron : and his
firstborn was Amnon, of Ahinoam the Jezreelitess ; and
his second, Chileab, of Abigail the wife of Nabal the
Carmelite ; and the third, Absalom the son of Maacah
the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur ; and the fourth,
Adonijah the son of Hagglth ; and the fifth, Shephatiah
the son of Abital ; and the sixth, Ithream, by Eglah
David's wife. These were born to David in Hebron.
And it came to pass, while there was war between the
house of Saul and the house of David, that Abner made
himself strong for the house of Saul. And Saul had a
concubine, whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of
Aiah : and Ish-bosheth said to Abner: — "Wherefore
hast thou gone in unto my father's concubine?" Then
was Abner very wroth for the words of Ish-bosheth, and
said : — " Am I a dog's head, that belongeth to Judah?
I do shew kindness this day unto the house of Saul thy
father, to his brethren, and to his friends, and have
not delivered thee into the hand of David, and yet thou
chargest me to-day with a fault concerning this woman?
iii. 9-22] II. SAMUEL 69
So do God to Abner, and more also, except, as the Lord
hath sworn to David, even so I do to him ; to translate
the kingdom from the house of Saul, and to set up the
throne of David over Israel and over Judah, from Dan
even to Beer-sheba. " And he could not answer Abner
a word again, because he feared him.
And Abner sent messengers to David on his behalf,
saying : — " Whose is the land?" saying also : — " Make
thy league with me, and, behold, my hand shall be
with thee, to bring about all Israel unto thee." And he
said: — "Well; I will make a league with thee: but
one thing I require of thee, that is, Thou shalt not see
my face, except thou first bring Michal Saul's daughter,
when thou comest to see my face." And David sent
messengers to Ish-bosheth Saul's son, saying: — "De-
liver me my wife Michal, which I espoused to me for
an hundred foreskins of the Philistines." And Ish-
bosheth sent, and took her from her husband, even
from Phaltiel the son of Laish. And her husband went
with her along weeping behind her to Bahurim. Then
said Abner unto him: — "Go, return." And he re-
turned.
And Abner had communication with the elders of
Israel, saying: — " Ye sought for David in times past
to be king over you : now then do it : for the Lord hath
spoken of David, saying. By the hand of My servant
David I will save My people Israel out of the hand of
the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies. "
And Abner also spake in the ears of Benjamin : and
Abner went also to speak in the ears of David in Hebron
all that seemed good to Israel, and that seemed good to
the whole house of Benjamin. So Abner came to David
to Hebron, and twenty men with him. And David
made Abner and the men that were with him a feast.
And Abner said unto David : — " I will arise and go,
and will gather all Israel unto my lord the king, that
they may make a league with thee, and that thou mayest
reign over all that thine heart desireth." And David
sent Abner away ; and he went in peace.
And, behold, the servants of David and Joab came
from a foray, and brought in a great spoil with them :
but Abner was not with David in Hebron ; for he had
70 11. SAMUEL [iii. 23-35
sent him away, and he was gone in peace. When Joab
and all the host that was with him were come, they told
Joab, saying: — " Abner the son of Ner came to the
king, and he hath sent him away, and he is gone in
peace." Then Joab came to the king, and said: —
" What hast thou done? behold, Abner came unto thee;
why is it that thou hast sent him away, and he is quite
gone? Thou knowest Abner the son of Ner, that he
came to deceive thee, and to know thy going out and
thy coming in, and to know all that thou doest. " And
when Joab was come out from David, he sent mes-
sengers after Abner, which brought him again from the
well of Sirah : but David knew it not. And when Abner
was returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside in the
gate to speak with him quietly, and smote him there
under the fifth rib, that he died, for the blood of Asahel
his brother.
And afterward when David heard it, he said : — " I
and my kingdom are guiltless before the Lord for ever
from the blood of Abner the son of Ner : let it rest
on the head of Joab, and on all his father's house; and
let there not fail from the house of Joab one that hath
an issue, or that is a leper, or that leaneth on a staff,
or that falleth on the sword, or that lacketh bread."
So Joab and Abishai his brother slew Abner, because
he had slain their brother Asahel at Gibeon in the battle.
And David said to Joab and to all the people that
were with him: — "Rend your clothes, and gird you
with sackcloth, and mourn before Abner." And king
David himself followed the bier. And they buried
Abner in Hebron : and the king lifted up his voice, and
wept at the grave of Abner; and all the people wept.
And the king lamented over Abner, and said,
Should Abner die as a fool dieth?
Thy hands were not bound, nor thy feet put into
fetters :
As a man falleth before wicked men, so fellest
thou.
And all the people wept again over him. And when
all the people came to cause David to eat meat while
it was yet day, David sware, saying: — "So do God
to me, and more also, if I taste bread, or ought else,
iii. 36— iv. 10] II. SAMUEL 71
till the sun be down." And all the people took notice
of it, and it pleased them : as whatsoever the king did
pleased all the people. For all the people and all Israel
understood that day that it was not of the king to slay
Abner the son of Ner. And the king said unto his
servants : — " Know ye not that there is a prince and a
great man fallen this day in Israel? And I am this
day weak, though anointed king; and these men the
sons of Zeruiah be too hard for me : the Lord shall
reward the doer of evil according to his wickedness."
And when Saul's son heard that Abner was dead in
Hebron, his hands were feeble, and all the Israelites
were troubled. And Saul's son had two men that were
captains of bands : the name of the one was Baanah,
and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon
a Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin : (for Beeroth
also was reckoned to Benjamin : and the Beerothites
fled to Gittaim, and were sojourners there until this
day.) And Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son that was
lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings
came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse
took him up and fled : and it came to pass, as she made
haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his
name was Mephibosheth. And the sons of Rimmon
the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went, and came
about the heat of the day to the house of Ish-bosheth,
who lay on a bed at noon. And they came thither into
the midst of the house, as though they would have
fetched wheat ; and they smote him under the fifth rib :
and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped. For when
they came into the house, he lay on his bed in his bed-
chamber, and they smote him, and slew him, and be-
headed him, and took his head, and gat them away
through the Arabah all night. And they brought the
head of Ish-bosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to
the king: — " Behold the head of Ish-bosheth the son
of Saul thine enemy, which sought thy life ; and the
Lord hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul,
and of his seed." And David answered Rechab and
Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite,
and said unto them : — " As the Lord liveth, who hath
redeemed my soul out of all adversity, when one told
72 II. SAMUEL [iv. II— V. II
me, saying, Behold, Saul is dead, thinking to have
brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him
in Ziklag, who thought that I would have given him a
reward for his tidings : how much more, when wicked
men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon
his bed? shall I not therefore now require his blood of
your hand, and take you away from the earth?" And
David commanded his young men, and they slew them,
and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them
up over the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of
Ish-bosheth, and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in
Hebron.
Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto
Hebron, and spake, saying: — "Behold, we are thy
bone and thy flesh. Also in time past, when Saul was
king over us, thou wast he that leddest out and brought-
est in Israel : and the Lord said to thee. Thou shalt
feed My people Israel, and thou shalt be a captain over
Israel." So all the elders of Israel came to the king
to Hebron ; and king David made a league with them
in Hebron before the Lord : and they anointed David
king over Israel.
David was thirty years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned forty years. In Hebron he reigned over
Judah seven years and six months : and in Jerusalem he
reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah.
And the king and his men went to Jerusalem unto the
Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land : which spake unto
David, saying : — " Except thou take away the blind and
the lame, thou shalt not come in hither;" thinking,
David cannot come in hither. Nevertheless David took
the strong hold of Zion : the same is the city of David.
And David said on that day: — "Whosoever smiteth
the Jebusites, let him get up to the watercourse, and as
for the lame and the blind that are hated of David's
soul " Wherefore they said : — " The blind and the
lame shall not come into the house." So David dwelt
in the fort, and called it the city of David. And David
built round about from Millo and inward. And David
went on, and grew great, and the Lord God of hosts
was with him.
And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David,
V. 12— vi. 2] II. SAMUEL 73
and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons : and they
built David an house. And David perceived that the
Lord had established him king over Israel, and that He
had exalted his kingdom for His people Israel's sake.
And David took him more concubines and wives out of
Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron : and there
were yet sons and daughters born to David. And these
be the names of those that were born unto him in Jeru-
salem; Shammuah, and Shobab, and Nathan, and
Solomon, Ibhar also, and Elishua, and Nepheg, and
Japhia, and Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphalet.
But when the Philistines heard that they had anointed
David king over Israel, all the Philistines came up to
seek David ; and David heard of it, and went down to
the hold. The Philistines also came and spread them-
selves in the valley of Rephaim. And David enquired
of the Lord, saying : — " Shall I go up to the Philistines?
wilt Thou deliver them into mine hand?" And the Lord
said unto David : — " Go up : for I will doubtless deliver
the Philistines into thine hand." And David came to
Baal-perazim, and David smote them there, and
said : — ' ' The Lord hath broken forth upon mine ene-
mies before me, as the breach of waters. " Therefore he
called the name of that place Baal-perazim. And there
they left their images, and David and his men burned
them.
And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread
themselves in the valley of Rephaim. And when David
enquired of the Lord, He said :—" Thou shalt not go
up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon
them over against the mulberry trees. And let it be,
when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of
the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself :
for then shall the Lord go out before thee, to smite the
host of the Philistines." And David did so, as the Lord
had commanded him ; and smote the Philistines from
Geba until thou come to Gazer.
Again, David gathered together all the chosen men
of Israel, thirty thousand. And David arose, and went
with all the people that were with him from Baale-
Judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whose
name is called by the name of the Lord of hosts that
D 2
74 n. SAMUEL [vi. 3-17
dwelleth between the cherubim. And they set the ark
of God upon a new cart, and brought it out of the house
of Abinadab that was in Gibeah : and Uzzah and Ahio,
the sons of Abinadab, drave the new cart. And they
brought it out of the house of Abinadab which was at
Gibeah, accompanying the ark of God : and Ahio went
before the ark. And David and all the house of Israel
played before the Lord on all manner of instruments
made of fir wood, even on harps, and on psalteries, and
on timbrels, and on cornets, and on cymbals. And when
they came to Nachon's threshingfloor, Uzzah put forth
his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the
oxen shook it. And the anger of the Lord was kindled
against Uzzah ; and God smote him there for his error ;
and there he died by the ark of God. And David was
displeased, because the Lord had miade a breach upon
Uzzah : and he called the name of the place Perez-uzzah
to this day. And David was afraid of the Lord that
day, and said : — " How shall the ark of the Lord come
to me?" So David would not remove the ark of the
Lord unto him into the city of David : but David carried
it aside into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. And
the ark of the Lord continued in the house of Obed-
edom the Gittite three months : and the Lord blessed
Obed-edom, and all his household.
And it was told king David, saying: — "The Lord
hath blessed the house of Obed-edom, and all that
pertaineth unto him, because of the ark of God." So
David went and brought up the ark of God from the
house of Obed-edom into the city of David with glad-
ness. And it was so, that when they that bare the
ark of the Lord had gone six paces, he sacrificed an
ox and a fatllng. And David danced before the Lord
with all his might ; and David was girded with a linen
ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought
up the ark of the Lord with shouting, and with the
sound of the trumpet. And as the ark of the Lord came
into the city of David, Michal Saul's daughter looked
through a window, and saw king David leaping and
dancing before the Lord ; and she despised him in her
heart. And they brought in the ark of the Lord, and
set it in its place, in the midst of the tabernacle that
vi. i8— vii. 8] II. SAMUEL 75
David had pitched for it : and David offered burnt offer-
ings and peace offerings before the Lord. And as soon
as David had made an end of offering burnt offerings
and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name
of the Lord of hosts. And he dealt among all the
people, even among the v/hole multitude of Israel, as
well to the women as men, to every one a cake of bread,
and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine. So all
the people departed every one to his house.
Then David returned to bless his household. And
Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David,
and said : — " How glorious was the king of Israel to-
day, who uncovered himself to-day in the eyes of the
handmaids of his servants, as one of the vain fellows
shamelessly uncovereth himself !" And David said unto
Michal : — " It was before the Lord, which chose me
before thy father, and before all his house, to appoint
me ruler over the people of the Lord, over Israel : there-
fore will I play before the Lord. And I will yet be more
vile than thus, and will be base in mine own sight : and
of the maidservants which thou hast spoken of, of them
shall I be had in honour." Therefore Michal the
daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death.
And it came to pass, when the king sat in his house,
and the Lord had given him rest round about from all
his enemies, that the king said unto Nathan the pro-
phet : — " See now, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the
ark of God dwelleth within curtains." And Nathan
said to the king : — " Go, do all that is in thine heart;
for the Lord is with thee." And it came to pass that
night, that the word of the Lord came unto Nathan,
saying: —
" Go and tell My servant David, Thus saith the
Lord, Shalt thou build Me an house for Me to dwell in?
whereas I have not dwelt in any house since the time
that I brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt,
to this day, but have walked in a tent and in a taber-
nacle. In all the places wherein I have walked with all
the children of Israel spake I a word with any of the
tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed My people
Israel, saying. Why build ye not Me an house of cedar?
Now therefore so shalt thou say unto My servant David,
76 II. SAMUEL [vii. 9-23
Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I took thee from the sheep-
cote, from following the sheep, to be ruler over My
people, over Israel : and I was with thee whithersoever
thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies out of
thy sight, and have made thee a great name, like unto
the name of the great men that are in the earth. More-
over I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will
plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their
own, and move no more; neither shall the children of
wickedness afflict them any more, as beforetime, and
as since the time that I commanded judges to be over
My people Israel, and have caused thee to rest from
all thine enemies. Also the Lord telleth thee that He
will make thee an house. And when thy days be ful-
filled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up
thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy
bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall
build an house for My name, and I will stablish the
throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father,
and he shall be My son. If he commit iniquity, I will
chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes
of the children of men. But My mercy shall not depart
away from him, as I took it from Saul, whorn I put
away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom
shall be established for ever before thee : thy throne
shall be established for ever." According to all these
words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan
speak unto David.
Then went king David in, and sat before the Lord,
and he said : — " Who am I, O Lord God? and what is
my house, that Thou hast brought me hitherto? And
this was yet a small thing in Thy sight, O Lord God ;
but Thou hast spoken also of Thy servant's house for a
great while to come. And is this the manner of man,
O Lord God? And what can David say more unto
Thee? for Thou, Lord God, knowest Thy servant. For
Thy word's sake, and according to Thine own heart,
hast Thou done all these great things, to make Thy
servant know them. Wherefore Thou art great, O
Lord God : for there is none like Thee, neither is there
any God beside Thee, according to all that we have
heard with our ears. And what one nation in the earth
vii. 24— viii. 6] II. SAMUEL 77
is like Thy people, even like Israel, whom God went to
redeem for a. people to Himself, and to make Him a
name, and to do for you great thing^s and terrible, for
Thy land, before Thy people, which Thou redeemedst
to thee from Egypt, from the nations and their g-ods?
For Thou hast confirmed to Thyself Thy people Israel
to be a people unto Thee for ever : and Thou, Lord, art
become their God. And now, O Lord God, the word
that Thou hast spoken concerning Thy servant, and
concerning his house, establish it for ever, and do as
Thou hast said. And let Thy name be magnified for
ever, saying, The Lord of hosts is the God over Israel :
and let the house of Thy servant David be established
before Thee. For Thou, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel,
hast revealed to Thy servant, saying, I will build thee
an house : therefore hath Thy servant found in his heart
to pray this prayer unto Thee. And now, O Lord God,
Thou art that God, and Thy words be true, and Thou
hast promised this goodness unto Thy servant : there-
fore now let it please Thee to bless the house of Thy
servant, that it may continue for ever before Thee : for
Thou, O Lord God, hast spoken it : and with Thy
blessing let the house of Thy servant be blessed for
ever. ' '
And after this it came to pass, that David smote the
Philistines, and subdued them : and David took Metheg-
ammah out of the hand of the Philistines. And he
smote IMoab, and measured them with a line, casting
them down to the ground ; even with two lines mea-
sured he to put to death, and with one full line to keep
alive. And so the Moabites became David's servants,
and brought gifts.
David smote also Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, king
of Zobah, as he went to recover his dominion at the
river Euphrates. And David took from him a thousand
chariots, and seven hundred horsemen, and twenty
thousand footmen : and David houghed all the chariot
horses, but reserved of them for an hundred chariots.
And when the Syrians of Damascus came to succour
Hadadezer king of Zobah, David slew of the Syrians two
and twenty thousand men. Then David put garrisons
in Syria of Damascus : and the Syrians became servants
78 II. SAMUEL [viii. 7— ix. 3
to David, and broug-ht gifts. And the Lord preserved
David whithersoever he went. And David took the
shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer,
and brought them to Jerusalem. And from Betah, and
from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, king David took
exceeding much brass.
When Toi king of Hamath heard that David had
smitten all the host of Hadadezer, then Toi sent Joram
his son unto king David, to salute him, and to bless
him, because he had fought against Hadadezer, and
smitten him : for Hadadezer had wars with Toi. And
Joram brought with him vessels of silver, and vessels
of gold, and vessels of brass : which also king David
did dedicate unto the Lord, with the silver and gold that
he had dedicated of all nations which he subdued ; of
Syria, and of Moab, and of the children of Ammon, and
of the Philistines, and of Amalek, and of the spoil of
Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah. And David
gat him a name when he returned from smiting of the
Syrians in the valley of salt, even eighteen thousand
men.
And he put garrisons in Edom ; throughout all Edom
put he garrisons, and all they of Edom became David's
servants. And the Lord preserved David whithersoever
he went. And David reigned over all Israel ; and
David executed judgment and justice unto all his people.
And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the host ; and
Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder ; and Zadok
the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar,
were the priests ; and Seraiah was the scribe ; and
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Chereth-
ites and the Pelethites ; and David's sons were chief
rulers.
And David said : — " Is there yet any that is left of
the house of Saul, that I may shew him kindness for
Jonathan's sake?" And there was of the house of Saul
a servant whose name was Ziba. And when they had
called him unto David, the king said unto him : — ■" Art
thou Ziba?" And he said: — "Thy servant is he."
And the king- said : — " Is there not yet any of the house
of Saul, that I may shew the kindness of God unto
him?" And Ziba said unto the king: — "Jonathan
I'x. 4— X. 3] II. SAMUEL 79
hath yet a son, which is lame on his feet." And the
king said unto him : — " Where is he?" And Ziba said
unto the king : — " Behold, he is in the house of Machir,
the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar. "
Then king David sent, and fetched him out of the
house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar.
Now when Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son
of Saul, was come unto David, he fell on his face, and
did reverence. And David said: — "Mephibosheth."
And he answered : — " Behold thy servant !" And David
said unto him : — " Fear not : for I will surely shew thee
kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore
thee all the land of Saul thy father ; and thou shalt eat
bread at my table continually." And he bowed himself,
and said : — " What is thy servant, that thou shouldest
look upon such a dead dog as I am?" Then the king
called to Ziba, Saul's servant, and said unto him : —
" I have given unto thy master's son all that pertained
to Saul and to all his house. Thou therefore, and thy
sons, and thy servants, shall till the land for him, and
thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may
have food to eat : but Mephibosheth thy master's son
shall eat bread alway at my table." Now Ziba had
fifteen sons and twenty servants. Then said Ziba unto
the king : — " According to all that my lord the king
hath commanded his servant, so shall thy servant do."
" As for Mephibosheth," said the king, " he shall eat
at my table, as one of the king's sons." And Mephi-
bosheth had a young son, whose name was Micha. And
all that dwelt in the house of Ziba were servants unto
Mephibosheth. So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem :
for he did eat continually at the king's table; and was
lame on both his feet.
And it came to pass after this, that the king of the
children of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in
his stead. Then said David : — " I will shew kindness
unto Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father shewed
kindness unto me." And David sent to comfort him
by the hand of his servants for his father. And David's
servants came into the land of the children of Ammon.
And the princes of the children of Ammon said unto
Hanun their lord : — " Thinkest thou that David doth
8o 11. SAMUEL [x. 4-16
honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto
thee? hath not David rather sent his servants unto
thee, to search the city, and to spy it out, and to over-
throw it?" Wherefore Hanun took David's servants,
and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off
their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and
sent them away. When they told it unto David, he sent
to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed :
and the king said : — •" Tarry at Jericho until your beards
be grown, and then return."
And when the children of Ammon saw that they stank
before David, the children of Ammon sent and hired
the Syrians of Beth-rehob, and the Syrians of Zoba,
twenty thousand footmen, and of king Maacah a thou-
sand men, and of Ish-tob twelve thousand men. And
when David heard of it, he sent Joab, and all the host
of the mighty men. And the children of Ammon came
out, and put the battle in array at the entering in of the
gate : and the Syrians of Zoba, and of Rehob, and Ish-
tob, and Maacah, were by themselves in the field. When
Joab saw that the front of the battle was against him
before and behind, he chose of all the choice men of
Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians : and
the rest of the people he delivered into the hand of Abi-
shai his brother, that he might put them in array against
the children of Ammon. And he said : — " If the Syrians
be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me : but if
the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I
will come and help thee. Be of good courage, and let
us play the men for our people, and for the cities of our
God : and the Lord do that which seemeth Him good."
And Joab drew nigh, and the people that were with
him, unto the battle against the Syrians : and they fled
before him. And when the children of Ammon saw
that the Syrians were fled, then fled they also before
Abishai, and entered into the city. So Joab returned
from the children of Ammon, and came to Jerusalem.
And when the Syrians saw that they were smitten before
Israel, they gathered themselves together. And Hadad-
ezer sent, and brought out the Syrians that were be-
yond the River : and they came to Helam ; and Shobach
the captain of the host of Hadadezer went before them.
X. 17— xi. ii] II. SAMUEL 8i
And when it was told David, he gathered all Israel to-
gether, and passed over Jordan, and came to Helain.
And the Syrians set themselves in array against David,
and fought with him. And the Syrians fled before
Israel ; and David slew the men of seven hundred
chariots of the Syrians, and forty thousand horsemen,
and smote Shobach the captain of their host, who died
there. And when all the kings that were servants to
Hadadezer saw that they were smitten before Israel,
they made peace with Israel, and served them. So the
Syrians feared to help the children of Ammon any more.
And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at
the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent
Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel ; and
they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged
Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.
And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David
arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the
king's house : and from the roof he saw a woman bath-
ing ; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.
And David sent and enquired after the woman. And
one said: — "Is not this Bath-sheba, the daughter of
Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?" And David sent
messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him,
and he lay with her ; for she was purified from her un-
cleanness : and she returned unto her house. And the
woman conceived, and sent and told David, and said :
— " I am with child."
And David sent to Joab, saying : — " Send me Uriah
the Hittite." And Joab sent Uriah to David. And
when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded of him
how Joab did, and how the people did, and how the war
prospered. And David said to Uriah :- — " Go down to
thy house, and wash thy feet." And Uriah departed
out of the king's house, and there followed him a mess
of meat from the king. But Uriah slept at the door of
the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and
went not down to his house. And when they had told
David, saying: — "Uriah went not down unto his
house," David said unto Uriah: — ^" Camest thou
not from thy journey? why then didst thou not
go down unto thine house?" And Uriah said
82 11. SAMUEL [xi. 12-25
unto David: — "The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide
in tents ; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my
lord, are encamped in the open fields ; shall I then go
into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with
my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will
not do this thing. " And David said to Uriah : — " Tarry
here to-day also, and to-morrow I will let thee depart."
So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow.
And when David had called him, he did eat and drink
before him ; and he made him drunk : and at even he
went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord,
but went not down to his house.
And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote
a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. And
he wrote in the letter, saying : — " Set ye Uriah in the
forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him,
that he may be smitten, and die." And it came to pass,
when Joab observed the city, that he assigned Uriah
unto a place where he knew that valiant men were. And
the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab : and
there fell some of the people of the servants of David ;
and Uriah the Hittite died also. Then Joab sent and
told David all the things concerning the war ; and
charged the messenger, saying : — ^" When thou hast
made an end of telling the matters of the war unto the
king, and if so be that the king's wrath arise, and he
say unto thee. Wherefore approached ye so nigh unto
the city when ye did fight? knew ye not that they would
shoot from the wall? who smote Abimelech the son
of Jerubbesheth? did not a woman cast a piece of a
millstone upon him from the wall, that he died in The-
bez? why went ye nigh the wall? then say thou.
Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also." So the
messenger went, and came and shewed David all that
Joab had sent him for. And the messenger said unto
David : — " Surely the men prevailed against us, and came
out unto us into the field, and we were upon them even
unto the entering of the gate. And the shooters shot
from off the wall upon thy servants ; and some of the
king's servants be dead, and thy servant Uriah the
Hittite is dead also." Then David said unto the mes-
senger : — " Thus shalt thou say unto Joab, Let not this
xi. 26— xii. II] II. SAMUEL 83
thing- displease thee, for the sword devoureth one as well
as another: make thy battle more strong- against the
city, and overthrow it: and encourage thou him."
And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her hus-
band was dead, she mourned for her husband. And
when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched
her to his house, and she became his wife, and bare
him a son. But the thing- that David had done dis-
pleased the Lord.
And the Lord sent Nathan unto David. And he came
unto him, and said unto him : — " There were two men
in one city ; the one rich, and the other poor. The
rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds : but the
poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which
he had bought and nourished up : and it grew up to-
gether with him, and with his children ; it did eat of his
own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his
bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. And there
came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to
take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for
the wayfaring man that was come unto him ; but took
the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that
was come to him." And David's anger was greatly
kindled against the man ; and he said to Nathan : —
" As the Lord liveth the man that hath done this thing
shall surely die : and he shall restore the lamb fourfold,
because he did this thing, and because he had no pity."
And Nathan said to David: — "Thou art the man.
Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king^
over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul ;
and I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's
wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel
and of Judah ; and if that had been too little, I would
moreover have given unto thee such and such things.
Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the
Lord, to do evil in His sight? thou hast killed Uriah
the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to
be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the
children of Ammon. Now therefore the sword shall
never depart from thine house; because thou hast de-
spised Me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite
to be thy wife. Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will
84 II. SAMUEL [xii. 12-24
raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I
will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto
thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the
sight of this sun. For thou didst it secretly : but I will
do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun."
And David said unto Nathan : — " I have sinned
against the Lord." And Nathan said vinto David: —
" The Lord also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not
die. Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given
great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme,
the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die."
And Nathan departed unto his house. And the Lord
struck the child that Uriah's wife bare unto David, and
it was very sick. David therefore besought God for
the child ; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all
night upon the earth. And the elders of his house arose,
and went to him, to raise him up from the earth : but he
would not, neither did he eat bread with them. And it
came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died.
And the servants of David feared to tell him that the
child was dead: for they said: — "Behold, while the
child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would not
hearken unto our voice : how will he then vex himself, if
we tell him that the child is dead?" But when David
saw that his servants whispered, David perceived that
the child was dead : therefore David said unto his serv-
ants : — " Is the child dead?" And they said: — "He
is dead. ' ' Then David arose from the earth, and washed,
and anointed himself, and changed his apparel, and
came into the house of the Lord, and worshipped : then
he came to his own house; and when he required, they
set bread before him, and he did eat. Then said his
servants unto him : — " What thing is this that thou hast
done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it
was alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise
and eat bread." And he said : — " While the child was
yet alive, I fasted and wept : for I said, Who can tell
whether God will be gracious to me, that the child may
live? But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast?
can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he
shall not return to me."
And David comforted Bath-sheba his wife, and went
xii. 25— xiii. 6] II. SAMUEL 85
in unto her, and lay with her : and she bare a son, and
he called his name Solomon : and the Lord loved him.
And He sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet ; and
he called his name Jedidiah, because of the Lord.
And Joab fought against Rabbah of the children of
Ammon, and took the royal city. And Joab sent rnes-
seng-ers to David, and said: — " I have fought against
Rabbah, and have taken the city of waters. Now there-
fore gather the rest of the people together, and encamp
against the city, and take it : lest I take the city, and it
be called after my name." And David gathered all the
people together, and went to Rabbah, and fought against
it, and took it. And he took their king's crown from
off his head, the weight whereof was a talent of gold
with the precious stones : and it was set on David's
head. And he brought forth the spoil of the city in
great abundance. And he brought forth the people that
were therein, and put them under saws, and under
harrows of iron, and under axes of iron, and made them
pass through the brick-kiln : and thus did he unto all
the cities of the children of Ammon. So David and all
the people returned unto Jerusalem.
And it came to pass after this, that Absalom the son
of David had a fair sister, whose name was Tamar;
and Amnon the son of David loved her. And Amnon
was so vexed, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar;
for she was a virgin ; and Amnon thought it hard for
him to do any thing to her. But Amnon had a friend,
whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David's
brother : and Jonadab was a very subtil man. And he
said unto him : — " Why art thou, being the king's son,
lean from day to day? wilt thou not tell me?" And
Amnon said unto him : — " I love Tamar, my brother
Absalom's sister." And Jonadab said unto him: —
" Lay thee down on thy bed, and make thyself sick : and
when thy father cometh to see thee, say unto him, I
pray thee, let my sister Tamar come, and give me meat,
and dress the meat in my sight, that I may see it, and
eat it at her hand. "
So Amnon lay down, and made himself sick : and
when the king was come to see him, Amnon said unto
the king: — " I pray thee, let Tamar my sister come,
86 n. SAMUEL [xiii. 7-20
and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, that I may
eat at her hand." Then David sent home to Tamar,
saying : — " Go now to thy brother Amnon's house, and
dress him meat." So Tamar went to her brother Am-
non's house; and he was laid down. And she took
flour, and kneaded it, and made cakes in his sight, and
did bake the cakes. And she took a pan, and poured
them out before him ; but he refused to eat. And Am-
non said: — " Have out all men from me." And they
went out every man from him. And Amnon said unto
Tamar: — "Bring the meat into the chamber, that 1
may eat of thine hand." And Tamar took the cakes
which she had made, and brought them into the chamber
to Amnon her brother. And when she had brought
them unto him to eat, he took hold of her, and said unto
her: — " Come lie with me, my sister." And she an-
swered him: — "Nay, my brother, do not force me;
for no such thing ought to be done in Israel : do not
thou this folly. And I, whither shall I cause my shame
to go? and as for thee, thou shalt be as one of the fools
in Israel. Now therefore, I pray thee, speak unto the
king ; for he will not withhold me from thee. ' ' How-
beit he would not hearken unto her voice : but, being
stronger than she, forced her, and lay with her.
Then Amnon hated her exceedingly ; so that the
hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love
wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her :
— " Arise, begone." And she said unto him : — " Not so :
this evil in sending me away is greater than the other
that thou didst unto me." But he would not hearken
unto her. Then he called his servant that ministered
unto him, and said : — " Put now this woman out from
me, and bolt the door after her." And she had a gar-
ment of divers colours upon her : for with such robes
were the king's daughters that were virgins apparelled.
Then his servant brought her out, and bolted the door
after her. And Tamar put ashes on her head, and rent
her garment of divers colours that was on her, and laid
her hand on her head, and went on crying. And Ab-
salom her brother said unto her: — " Hath x'\mnon thy
brother been with thee? but hold now thy peace, my
sister: he is thy brother; regard not this thing." So
xiii. 21-34] n. SAMUEL 87
Tamar remained desolate in her brother Absalom's
house. But when king^ David heard of all these thing-s,
he was very wroth. And Absalom spake unto his
brother Amnon neither good nor bad : for Absalom
hated Amnon, because he had forced his sister Tamar.
And it came to pass after two full years, that Absalom
had sheepshearers in Baal-hazor, which is beside
Ephraim : and Absalom invited all the kingf's sons.
And Absalom came to the king-, and said : — " Behold
now, thy servant hath sheepshearers ; let the king-, I
beseech thee, and his servants g-o with thy servant."
And the king said to Absalom : — " Nay, my son, let us
not all now g-o, lest we be burdensome unto thee." And
he pressed him : howbeit he would not g-o, but blessed
him. Then said Absalom : — " If not, I pray thee, let
my brother Amnon g-o with us." And the king- said
unto him : — " Why should he go with thee?" But
Absalom pressed him, that he let Amnon and all the
king's sons go with him. Now Absalom had com-
manded his servants, saying: — "Mark ye now when
Amnon's heart is merry with wine, and when I say
unto you. Smite Amnon; then kill him, fear not: have
not I commanded you? be courageous, and be valiant."
And the servants of Absalom did unto Amnon as
Absalom had commanded.
Then all the king's sons arose, and every man gat
him up upon his mule, and fled. And it came to pass,
while they were in the way, that tidings came to David,
saying : — " Absalom hath slain all the king's sons, and
there is not one of them left." Then the king arose,
and tare his garments, and lay on the earth; and all
his servants stood by with their clothes rent. And
Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David's brother, an-
swered and said : — " Let not my lord suppose that they
have slain all the young men the king's sons; for
Amnon only is dead : for by the appointment of Ab-
salom this hath been determined from the day that he
forced his sister Tamar. Now therefore let not my
lord the king take the thing to his heart, to think that
all the king's sons are dead : for Amnon only is dead."
But Absalom fled. And the young man that kept the
watch lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, there
88 n. SAMUEL [xiii. 35— xiv. 10
came much people by the way of the hill side behind
him. And Jonadab said unto the king": — "Behold,
the king-'s sons come: as thy servant said, so it is."
And it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of
speaking-, that, behold, the king-'s sons came, and lifted
up their" voice and wept : and the king also and all his
servants wept very sore. But Absalom fled, and went
to Talmai, the son of Ammihud, king- of Geshur. And
David mourned for his son every day. So Absalom
fled, and went to Geshur, and was there three years.
And the soul of king- David longed to g-o forth unto
Absalom : for he was comforted concerning Amnon,
seeing- he was dead.
Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king-'s
heart was toward Absalom. And Joab sent to Tekoah,
and fetched thence a wise woman, and said unto her : —
" I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put
on now mourning apparel, and anoint not thyself with
oil, but be as a woman that had a long time mourned
for the dead : and come to the king, and speak on this
manner unto him." So Joab put the words in her
mouth. And when the woman of Tekoah spake to the
king, she fell on her face to the ground, and did obeis-
ance, and said : — " Help, O king." And the king said
unto her : — " What aileth thee?" And she answered :
— " I am indeed a widow woman, and mine husband is
dead. And thy handmaid had two sons, and they two
strove together in the field, and there was none to part
them, but the one smote the other, and slew him. And,
behold, the whole family is risen against thine hand-
maid, and they said, Deliver him that smote his brother,
that we may kill him, for the life of his brother whom he
slew ; and we will destroy the heir also : and so they
shall quench my coal which is left, and shall leave to
my husband neither name nor remainder upon the
earth." And the king said unto the woman: — "Go
to thine house, and I will give charge concerning thee."
And the woman of Tekoah said unto the king : — " My
lord, O king, the iniquity be on me, and on my father's
house: and the king and his throne be guiltless."
And the king said : — •" \\'hosoever saith ought unto
thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any
xiv. II-2I] 11. SAMUEL 89
more." Then said she: — " I pray thee, let the king-
remember the Lord thy God, that thou wouldest not
suffer the revengers of blood to destroy any more, lest
they destroy my son." And he said : — "As the Lord
liveth, there shall not one hair of thy son fall to the
earth."
Then the woman said : — " Let thine handmaid, I pray
thee, speak one word unto my lord the king." And
he said: — ^" Say on." And the woman said: —
"Wherefore then hast thou thought such a thing
against the people of God? for the king doth speak
this thing as one which is faulty, in that the king doth
not fetch home again his banished. For we must needs
die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot
be gathered up again ; neither doth God respect any
person : yet doth He devise means, that His banished
be not expelled from Him. Now therefore that I am
come to speak of this thing unto my lord the king, it is
because the people have made me afraid : and thy
handmaid said, I will now speak unto the king ; it may
be that the king will perform the request of his hand-
maid. For the king wall hear, to deliver his handmaid
out of the hand of the man that would destroy me and
my son together out of the inheritance of God. Then
thine handmaid said. The word of my lord the king
shall now be comfortable : for as an angel of God, so
is my lord the king to discern good and bad : therefore
the Lord thy God will be with thee. ' '
Then the king answered and said unto the woman :
— " Hide not from me, I pray thee, the thing that 1
shall ask thee." And the woman said : — " Let my lord
the king now speak." And the king said: — " Is not
the hand of Joab with thee in all this?" And the
woman answered and said: — " As thy soul liveth, my
'lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to
the left from ought that my lord the king hath spoken :
for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these
words in the mouth of thine handmaid : to fetch about
this form of speech hath thy servant Joab done this
thing : and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom
of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the
earth." And the king said unto Joab : — " Behold now,
go 11. SAMUEL [xiv. 22— XV. 2
I have done this thing- : go therefore, bring the young
man Absalom again." And Joab fell to the ground on
his face, and bowed himself, and thanked the king : and
Joab said : — " To-day thy servant knoweth that I have
found grace in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the
king hath fulfilled the request of his servant. " So Joab
arose and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to
Jerusalem. And the king said : — " Let him turn to his
own house, and let him not see my face." So Absalom
returned to his own house, and saw not the king's face.
But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised
as Absalom for his beauty : from the sole of his foot
even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in
him. And when he polled his head, (for it was at every
year's end that he polled it : because the hair was heavy
on him, therefore he polled it :) he weighed the hair of
his head at two hundred shekels after the king's weight.
And unto Absalom there were born three sons, and
one daughter, whose name was Tamar : she was a
woman of a fair countenance.
So Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, and
saw not the king's face. Therefore Absalom sent for
Joab, to have sent him to the king ; but he would not
come to him : and when he sent again the second time,
he would not come. Therefore he said unto his serv-
ants :■ — -"See, Joab's field is near mine, and he hath
barley there; go and set it on fire." And Absalom's
servants set the field on fire. Then Joab arose, and
came to Absalom unto his house, and said unto him : —
" Wherefore have thy servants set my field on fire?"
And Absalom answered Joab :^ — "Behold, I sent unto
thee, saying. Come hither, that I may send thee to the
king, to say. Wherefore am I come from Geshur? it
had been good for me to have been there still : now
therefore let me see the king's face; and if there be
any iniquity in me, let him kill me." So Joab came to
the king, and told him : and when he had called for
Absalom, he came to the king, and bowed himself on
his face to the ground before the king : and the king-
kissed Absalom. And it came to pass after this, that
Absalom prepared him chariots and horses, and fifty
men to run before him. And Absalom rose up early,
XV. 3-15] II- SAMUEL 91
and stood beside the way of the gate : and it was so,
that when any man that had a controversy came to the
king- for judg-ment, then Absalom called unto him, and
said: — "Of what city art thou?" And he said: —
" Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel." And
Absalom said unto him : — " See, thy matters are good
and right; but there is no man deputed of the king to
hear thee." Absalom said moreover :^ — "Oh that I
were made judge in the land, that every man which hath
any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do
him justice !" And it was so, that when any man came
nigh to him to do him obeisance, he put forth his hand,
and took him, and kissed him. And on this manner
did Absalom to all Israel that came to the king for
judgment : so Absalom stole the hearts of the men of
Israel.
And it came to pass after four years, that Absalom
said unto the king : — " I pray thee, let me go and pay
my vow, which I have vowed unto the Lord in Hebron.
For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur
in Syria, saying, If the Lord shall bring me again
indeed to Jerusalem, then I will serve the Lord." And
the king said unto him: — "Go in peace." So he
arose, and went to Hebron. But Absalom sent spies
throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying: — " As soon
as ye hear the sound of the trumpet, then ye shall say,
Absalom reigneth in Hebron." And with Absalom
went two hundred men out of Jerusalem, that were
invited ; and they went in their simplicity, and they
knew not any thing. And Absalom sent for Ahithophel
the Gilonite, David's counsellor, from his city, even
from Giloh, while he offered sacrifices. And the con-
spiracy was strong ; for the people increased continu-
ally with Absalom.
And there came a messenger to David, saying: —
" The hearts of the men of Israel are after Absalom."
And David said unto all his servants that were with
him at Jerusalem: — "Arise, and let us flee; for we
shall not else escape from Absalom : make speed to
depart, lest he overtake us suddenly, and bring evil
upon us, and smite the city with the edge of the
sword." And the king's servants said unto the
92 11. SAMUEL [xv. 16-29
king: — " Behold, thy servants are ready to do what-
soever my lord the king" shall appoint." And the king
went forth, and all his household after him. And the
king left ten women, which were concubines, to keep
the house. And the king went forth, and all the people
after him, and tarried in a place that was far off. And
all his servants passed on beside him ; and all the
Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites,
six hundred men which came after him from Gath,
passed on before the king. Then said the king to
Ittai the Gittite : — " Wherefore goest thou also with
us ? return to thy place, and abide with the king : for
thou art a stranger, and also an exile. W'hereas thou
camest but yesterday, should I this day make thee go
up and down with us? seeing I go w^iither I may,
return thou, and take back thy brethren : mercy and
truth be with thee." And Ittai answered the king,
and said : — " As the Lord liveth, and as my lord the
king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall
be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy
servant be. " And David said to Ittai :- — " Go and pass
over." And Ittai the Gittite passed over, and all his
men, and all the little ones that were with him. And
all the country wept with a loud voice, and all the people
passed over : the king also himself passed over the
brook Kidron, and all the people passed over, toward
the way of the wilderness.
And lo, Zadok also came, and all the Levites were with
him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God : and they
set down the ark of God ; and Abiathar went up, until all
the people had done passing out of the city. And the
king said unto Zadok: — " Carry back the ark of God
into the city : if I shall find favour in the eyes of the
Lord, He will bring me again, and shew me both it, and
His habitation : but if He thus say, I have no delight
in thee; behold, here am I, let Him do to me as seemeth
good unto Him." The king said also unto Zadok the
priest : — " Art not thou a seer? return into the city in
peace, and your two sons with you, Ahimaaz thy son,
and Jonathan the son of Abiathar. See, I will tarry in
the plain of the wilderness, until there come word from
you to certify me." Zadok therefore and Abiathar
XV. 30— xvi. 4] II. SAMUEL 93
carried the ark of God again to Jerusalem : and they
tarried there.
And David went up by the ascent of mount OUvet, and
wept as he went up, and had his head covered, and he
went barefoot : and all the people that was with him
covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping
as they went up. And one told David, saying : — " Ahi-
thophel is among the conspirators with Absalom." And
David said : — " O Lord, I pray Thee, turn the counsel
of Ahithophel into fooHshness. " And it came to pass,
that when David was come to the top of the mount,
where he worshipped God, behold, Hushai the Archite
came to meet him with his coat rent, and earth upon
his head: unto whom David said: — " If thou passest
on with me, then thou shalt be a burden unto me : but
if thou return to the city, and say unto Absalom, I
will be thy servant, O king; as I have been thy father's
servant hitherto, so will I now also be thy servant :
then mayest thou for me defeat the counsel of Ahitho-
phel. And hast thou not there with thee Zadok and
Abiathar the priests? therefore it shall be, that what
thing soever thou shalt hear out of the king's house,
thou shalt tell it to Zadok and Abiathar the priests. Be-
hold, they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz
Zadok's son, and Jonathan Abiathar's son ; and by them
ye shall send unto me every thing that ye can hear."
So Hushai David's friend came into the city, and Absa-
lom came into Jerusalem.
And when David was a little past the top of the hill,
behold, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth met him, with
a couple of asses saddled, and upon them two hundred
loaves of bread, and an hundred bunches of raisins, and
an hundred of summer fruits, and a skin of wine. And
the king said unto Ziba: — "What meanest thou by
these?" And Ziba said : — " The asses be for the king's
household to ride on ; and the bread and summer fruit
for the young men to eat ; and the wine, that such as be
faint in the wilderness may drink." And the king
said: — "And where is thy master's son?" And Ziba
said unto the king: — "Behold, he abideth at Jeru-
salem : for he said, To-day shall the house of Israel
restore me the kingdom of my father." Then said the
94 n. SAMUEL [xvi. 5-17
king to Ziba : — " Behold, thine are all that pertained
unto Mephibosheth." And Ziba said: — "I humbly
beseech thee that I may find grace in thy sight, my lord,
O king. ' '
And when king David came to Bahurim, behold,
thence came out a man of the family of the house of
Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera : he
came forth, and cursed still as he came. And he cast
stones at David, and at all the servants of king David :
and all the people and all the mighty men were on his
right hand and on his left. And thus said Shimei when
he cursed : — " Come out, come out, thou bloody man,
and thou man of Belial : the Lord hath returned upon
thee all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead
thou hast reigned ; and the Lord hath delivered the
kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son : and, be-
hold, thou art taken in thy mischief, because thou art
a bloody man." Then said Abishai the son of Zeruiah
unto the king : — " Why should this dead dog curse my
lord the king? let me go over, I pray thee, and take
off his head." And the king said : — " What have I to
do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? so let him curse, be-
cause the Lord hath said unto him. Curse David. Who
shall then say. Wherefore hast thou done so?" And
David said to Abishai, and to all his servants : — " Be-
hold, my son, which came forth of my bowels, seeketh
my life : how much more now may this Benjamite do
it? let him alone, and let him curse; for the Lord hath
bidden him. It may be that the Lord will look on mine
affliction, and that the Lord will requite me good for his
cursing this day." And as David and his men went by
the way, Shimei went along on the hill's side over
against him, and cursed as he went, and threw stones
at him, and cast dust. And the king, and all the people
that were with him, came weary, and refreshed them-
selves there.
And Absalom, and all the people the men of Israel,
came to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel with him. And it
came to pass, when Hushai the Archite, David's friend,
was come unto Absalom, that Hushai said unto Absa-
lom : — " God save the king, God save the king." And
Absalom said to Hushai : — " Is this thy kindness to thy
xvi. i8— xvii. 9] II. SAMUEL 95
friend? why wentest thou not with thy friend?" And
Hushai said unto Absalom: — "Nay; but whom the
Lord, and this people, and all the men of Israel, choose,
his will I be, and with him will I abide. And again,
whom should I serve? should I not serve in the presence
of his son? as I have served in thy father's presence, so
will I be in thy presence. "
Then said Absalom to Ahithophel :— " Give counsel
among you what we shall do." And Ahithophel said
unto Absalom : — " Go in unto thy father's concubines,
which he hath left to keep the house ; and all Israel shall
hear that thou art abhorred of thy father : then shall
the hands of all that are with thee be strong. " So they
spread Absalom a tent upon the top of the house ; and
Absalom went in unto his father's concubines in the
sight of all Israel. And the counsel of Ahithophel,
which he counselled in those days, was as if a man had
enquired at the oracle of God : so was all the counsel of
Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom. More-
over Ahithophel said unto Absalom: — -"Let me now
choose out twelve thousand men, and I will arise and
pursue after David this night : and I will come upon him
while he is weary and weak handed, and will make him
afraid : and all the people that are with him shall flee ;
and I will smite the king only : and I will bring back all
the people unto thee : the man whom thou seekest is
as if all returned : so all the people shall be in peace."
And the saying pleased Absalom well, and all the elders
of Israel.
Then said Absalom : — " Call now Hushai the Archite
also, and let us hear likewise what he saith. " And
when Hushai was come to Absalom, Absalom spake
unto him, saying : — " Ahithophel hath spoken after this
manner: shall we do after his saying? if not; speak
thou." And Hushai said unto Absalom : — " The counsel
that Ahithophel hath given is not good at this time.
For," said Hushai, " thou knowest thy father and his
men, that they be mighty men, and they be chafed in
their minds, as a bear robbed of her whelps in the fields :
and thy father is a man of war, and will not lodge with
the people. Behold, he is hid now in some pit, or in
some other place : and it will come to pass, when some
96 II. SAMUEL [xvii. 10-20
of them be overthrown at the first, that whosoever
heareth it will say, There is a slaughter among the
people that follow Absalom. And he also that is valiant,
whose heart is as the heart of a lion, shall utterly melt :
for all Israel knoweth that thy father is a mighty man,
and they which be with him are valiant men. There-
fore I counsel that all Israel be generally gathered unto
thee, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, as the sand that
is by the sea for multitude ; and that thou go to battle
in thine own person. So shall we come upon him in some
place where he shall be found, and we will light upon
him as the dew falleth on the ground : and of him and of
all the men that are with him there shall not be left so
much as one. Moreover, if he be gotten into a city,
then shall all Israel bring ropes to that city, and we will
draw it into the river, until there be not one small stone
found there." And Absalom and all the men of Israel
said : — " The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better
than the counsel of Ahithophel. " For the Lord had
appointed to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to
the intent that the Lord might bring evil upon Absa-
lom.
Then said Hushai unto Zadok and to Abiathar the
priests: — "Thus and thus did Ahithophel counsel
Absalom and the elders of Israel ; and thus and thus
have I counselled. Now therefore send quickly, and
tell David, saying, Lodge not this night at the fords of
the wilderness, but speedily pass over; lest the king be
swallowed up, and all the people that are with him."
Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz stayed by En-rogel; for
they might not be seen to come into the city : and a
maidservant went and told them ; and they went and told
king David. Nevertheless a lad saw them, and told
Absalom : but they went both of them away quickly,
and came to a man's house in Bahurim, which had a
well in his court; whither they went down. And the
woman took and spread a covering over the well's
mouth, and spread ground corn thereon ; and the
thing was not known. And when Absalom's serv-
ants came to the woman to the house, they said : —
" Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?" And the woman
said unto them: — "They be gone over the brook
xvii. 21— xviii. 3] II. SAMUEL 97
of water." And when they had sought and could
not find them, they returned to Jerusalem. And it came
to pass, after they were departed, that they came up
out of the well, and went and told king David, and
said unto David : — " Arise, and pass quickly over the
water : for thus hath Ahithophel counselled against
you." Then David arose, and all the people that were
with him, and they passed over Jordan : by the morning
light there lacked not one of them that was not gone
over Jordan. And when Ahithophel saw that his coun-
sel was not followed, he saddled his ass, and arose, and
gat him home to his house, to his city, and put his house-
hold in order, and hanged himself, and died, and was
buried in the sepulchre of his father.
Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom passed
over Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him.
And Absalom made Amasa captain of the host instead
of Joab : which Amasa was a man's son, whose name
was Ithra an Israelite, that went in to Abigail the
daughter of Nahash, sister to Zeruiah Joab's mother.
So Israel and Absalom pitched in the land of Gilead.
And it came to pass, when David was come to Maha-
naim, that Shobi the son of Nahash of Rabbah of the
children of Ammon, and Machir the son of Ammiel of
Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite of Rogelim,
brought beds, and basons, and earthen vessels, and
wheat, and barley, and flour, and parched corn, and
beans, and lentiles, and parched pulse, and honey, and
butter, and sheep, and cheese of kine, for David, and
for the people that were with him, to eat : for they
said : — " The people is hungry, and weary, and thirsty,
in the wilderness."
And David numbered the people that were with him,
and set captains of thousands and captains of hundreds
over them. And David sent forth a third part of the
people under the hand of Joab, and a third part under
the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother,
and a third part under the hand of Ittai the Gittite. And
the king said unto the people : — -" I will surely go forth
with you myself also." But the people answered: —
" Thou shalt not go forth : for if we flee away, they will
not care for us ; neither if half of us die, will they care
VOL. II. E
98 II. SAMUEL [xviii. 4-16
for us : but now thou art worth ten thousand of us : there-
fore now it is better that thou succour us out of the
city. " And the king said unto them : — " What seemeth
you best I will do." And the king stood by the gate
side, and all the people came out by hundreds and by
thousands. And the king commanded Joab and Abi-
shai and Ittai, saying: — "Deal gently for my sake
with the young man, even with Absalom." And all the
people heard when the king gave all the captains charge
concerning Absalom. So the people went out into the
field against Israel : and the battle was in the wood of
Ephraim ; where the people of Israel were slain before
the servants of David, and there was there a great
slaughter that day of twenty thousand men. For the
battle was there scattered over the face of all the
country : and the wood devoured more people that day
than the sword devoured.
And Absalom met the servants of David. And Absa-
lom rode upon a mule, and the mule went under the
thick boughs of a great oak, and his head caught hold
of the oak, and he was taken up between the heaven
and the earth ; and the mule that was under him went
away. And a certain man saw it, and told Joab, and
said: — "Behold, I saw Absalom hangeid in an oak."
And Joab said unto the man that told him : — " And,
behold, thou sawest him, and why didst thou not smite
him there to the ground? and I would have given thee
ten shekels of silver, and a girdle." And the man said
unto Joab: — "Though I should receive a thousand
shekels of silver in mine hand, yet would I not put forth
mine hand against the king's son : for in our hearing the
king charged thee and Abishai and Ittai, saying. Beware
that none touch the young man Absalom. Otherwise I
should have wrought falsehood against mine own life :
for there is no matter hid from the king, and thou thyself
wouldest have set thyself against me." Then said
Joab : — "I may not tarry thus with thee." And he took
three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the
heart of Absalom, while he was yet alive in the midst
of the oak. And ten young men that bare Joab's armour
compassed about and smote Absalom, and slew him.
And Joab blew the trumpet, and the people returned
xviii. 17-28] 11. SAMUEL 99
from pursuing after Israel : for Joab held back the
people. And they took Absalom, and cast him into a
great pit in the wood, and laid a very great heap of
stones upon him : and all Israel fled every one to his
tent.
Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and reared
up for himself a pillar, which is in the king's dale : for
he said : — " I have no son to keep my name in remem-
brance :" and he called the pillar after his own name :
and it is called unto this day, Absalom's monument.
Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok : — " Let me now
run, and bear the king tidings, how that the Lord hath
avenged Him of His enemies." And Joab said unto
him : — " Thou shalt not bear tidings this day, but thou
shalt bear tidings another day : but this day thou shalt
bear no tidings, because the king's son is dead." Then
said Joab to the Cushite : — "Go tell the king what
thou hast seen." And the Cushite bowed himself unto
Joab, and ran. Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok
yet again to Joab: — " But howsoever, let me, I pray
thee, also run after the Cushite." And Joab said: —
" Wherefore wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou
wilt receive no pay for thy tidings?" " But how-
soever," said he, "let me run." And he said unto
him : — " Run." Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the
plain, and overran the Cushite.
And David sat between the two gates : and the watch-
man went up to the roof over the gate unto the wall,
and lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a man
running alone. And the watchman cried, atid told
the king. And the king said : — " If he be alone,
there is tidings in his mouth." And he came apace,
and drew near. And the watchman saw another man
running : and the watchman called unto the porter,
and said: — "Behold another man running alone."
And the king said: — "He also bringeth tidings."
And the watchman said: — " Methinketh the running
of the foremost is like the running of Ahimaaz the
son of Zadok." And the king said: — "He is a
good man, and cometh with good tidings." And Ahi-
maaz called, and said unto the king: — "All is well."
And he fell down to the earth upon his face before the
100 11. SAMUEL [xviii. 29— xix. 7
king, and said : — " Blessed be the Lord thy God, which
hath dehvered up the men that lifted up their hand
against my lord the king." And the king said : — " Is
the young man Absalom safe?" And Ahimaaz an-
swered :—" When Joab sent the king's servant, and
me thy servant, I saw a great tumult, but I knew not
what it was." And the king said unto him : — " Turn
aside, and stand here. " And he turned aside, and stood
still. And, behold, the Cushite came; and the Cushite
said : — " Tidings, my lord the king : for the Lord hath
avenged thee this day of all them that rose up against
thee." And the king said unto the Cushite : — " Is the
young man Absalom safe?" And the Cushite an-
swered:— "The enemies of my lord the king, and all
that rise against thee to do thee hurt, be as that young
man is." And the king was much moved, and went
up to the chamber over the gate, and wept : and as he
went, thus he said : — " O my son Absalom, my son,
my son Absalom ! would God I had died for thee, O
Absalom, my son, my son !"
And it was told Joab: — " Behold, the king weepeth
and mourneth for Absalom." And the victory that day
was turned into mourning unto all the people : for the
people heard say that day how the king was grieved for
his son. And the people gat them by stealth that day
into the city, as people being ashamed steal away when
they flee in battle. But the king covered his face, and
the king cried with a loud voice : — " O my son Absalom,
O Absalom, my son, my son!" And Joab came into
the house to the king, and said : — " Thou hast shamed
this day the faces of all thy servants, which this day
have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons and of
thv daughters, and the lives of thy wives, and the lives
of thy concubines ; in that thou lovest thine enemies, and
hatest thy friends. For thou hast declared this day,
that thou regardest neither princes nor servants : for
this day I perceive, that if Absalom had lived, and all
we had died this day, then it had pleased thee well.
Now therefore arise, go forth, and speak comfortably
unto thy servants : for I swear by the Lord, if thou
go not forth, there will not tarry one with thee this
night : and that will be worse unto thee than all the
xix. 8-20] 11. SAMUEL loi
evil that befell thee from thy youth until now." Then
the king arose, and sat in the gate. And they told unto
all the people, saying: — "Behold, the king doth sit
in the gate." And all the people came before the king.
Now Israel had fled every man to his tent. And all
the people were at strife throughout all the tribes of
Israel, saying : — " The king saved us out of the hands
of our enemies, and he delivered us out of the hand of
the Philistines ; and now he is fled out of the land for
Absalom. And Absalom, whom we anointed over us,
is dead in battle. Now therefore why speak ye not a
word of bringing the king back?"
And king David sent to Zadok and to Abiathar the
priests, saying : — " Speak unto the elders of Judah, say-
ing, Why are ye the last to bring the king back to his
house? seeing the speech of all Israel is come to the
king, even to his house. Ye are my brethren, ye are
my bones and my flesh : wherefore then are ye the last
to bring back the king? And say ye to Amasa, Art thou
not of my bone, and of my flesh? God do so to me, and
more also, if thou be not captain of the host before me
continually in the room of Joab. " And he bowed the
heart of all the men of Judah, even as the heart of one
man ; so that they sent this word unto the king : — " Re-
turn thou, and all thy servants." So the king returned,
and came to Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to
go to meet the king, to conduct the king over Jordan.
And Shimei the son of Cera, a Benjamite, which was
of Bahurim, hasted and came down with the men of
Judah to meet king David. And there were a thousand
men of Benjamin with him, and Ziba the servant of the
house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty serv-
ants with him ; and they went over Jordan before the
king. And there went over a ferry boat to carry over
the king's household, and to do what he thought good.
And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king,
as he was come over Jordan ; and said unto the king : —
" Let not ray lord impute iniquity unto me, neither do
thou remember that which thy servant did perversely
the day that my lord the king went out of Jerusalem,
that the king should take it to his heart. For thy serv-
ant doth know that I have sinned : therefore, behold,
102 11. SAMUEL [xix. 21-34
I am come the first this day of all the house of Joseph
to go down to meet my lord the king." But Abishai
the son of Zeruiah answered and said: — "Shall not
Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed the
Lord's anointed?" And David said : — " What have I
to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah, that ye should this
day be adversaries unto me? shall there any man be put
to death this day in Israel? for do not I know that I
am this day king over Israel?" Therefore the king
said unto Shimei: — "Thou shalt not die." And the
king sware unto him.
And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet
the king, and had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed
his beard, nor washed his clothes, from the day the
king departed until the day he came again in peace. And
it came to pass, when he was come to Jerusalem to meet
the king, that the king said unto him : — " Wherefore
wentest not thou with me, Mephibosheth?" And he
answered : — " My lord, O king, my servant deceived
me : for thy servant said, I will saddle me an ass, that I
may ride thereon, and go to the king ; because thy
servant is lame. And he hath slandered thy servant unto
my lord the king ; but my lord the king is as an angel of
God : do therefore what is good in thine eyes. For all
of my father's house were but dead men before my lord
the king : yet didst thou set thy servant among them
that did eat at thine own table. What right therefore
have I yet to cry any more unto the king?" And the
king said unto him : — " Why speakest thou any more
of thy matters? I have said. Thou and Ziba divide the
land." And Mephibosheth said unto the king : — " Yea,
let him take all, forasmuch as my lord the king is come
again in peace unto his own house."
And Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim,
and went over Jordan with the king, to conduct him over
Jordan. Now Barzillai was a very aged man, even
fourscore years old : and he had provided the king of
sustenance while he lay at Mahanaim ; for he was a
very great man. And the king said unto Barzillai : —
" Come thou over with me, and I will feed thee with me
in Jerusalem." And Barzillai said unto the king: —
" How long have I to live, that I should go up with the
xix. 35— XX. 2] 11. SAMUEL 103
king unto Jerusalem? I am this day fourscore years
old : and can I discern between good and evil ? can thy
servant taste what I eat or what I drink? can I hear
any more the voice of singing men and singing women?
wherefore then should thy servant be yet a burden unto
my lord the king ? Thy servant will go a little way over
Jordan with the king : and why should the king recom-
pense it me with such a reward ? Let thy servant, I
pray thee, turn back again, that I may die in mine own
city, and be buried by the grave of my father and of
my mother. But behold thy servant Chimham ; let him
go over with my lord the king ; and do to him what shall
seem good unto thee." And the king answered: —
" Chimham shall go over with me, and I will do to him
that which shall seem good unto thee : and whatsoever
thou shalt require of me, that will I do for thee." And
all the people went over Jordan. And when the king
was come over, the king kissed Barzillai, and blessed
him ; and he returned unto his own place.
Then the king went on to Gilgal, and Chimham went
on with him : and all the people of Judah conducted the
king, and also half the people of Israel. And, behold,
all the men of Israel came to the king, and said unto the
king: — "Why have our brethren the men of Judah
stolen thee away, and have brought the king, and his
household, and all David's men with him, over Jor-
dan?" And all the men of Judah answered the men of
Israel : — " Because the king is near of kin to us : where-
fore then be ye angry for this matter? have we eaten
at all of the king's cost? or hath he given us any
gift?" And the men of Israel answered the men of
Judah, and said : — " We have ten parts in the king,
and we have also more right in David than ye : why then
did ye despise us, that our advice should not be first
had in bringing back our king?" And the words of the
men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men
of Israel.
And there happened to be there a man of Belial, whose
name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Benjamite : and
he blew a trumpet, and said: — " We have no part in
David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse :
every man to his tents, O Israel." So every man of
104 n. SAMUEL [xx. 3-14
Israel went up from after David, and followed Sheba
the son of Bichri : but the men of Judah clave unto their
king, from Jordan even to Jerusalem.
And David came to his house at Jerusalem ; and the
king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had
left to keep the house, and put them in ward, and fed
them, but went not in unto them. So they were shut up
unto the day of their death, living in widowhood.
Then said the king to Amasa : — " Assemble me the
men of Judah within three days, and be thou here pre-
sent." So Amasa went to assemble the men of Judah :
but he tarried longer than the set time which he had
appointed him. And David said to Abishai : — "Now
shall Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did
Absalom : take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue
after him, lest he get him fenced cities, and escape us."
And there went out after him Joab's men, and the
Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and all the mighty men :
and they went out of Jerusalem, to pursue after Sheba
the son of Bichri. When they were at the great stone
which is in Gibeon, Amasa went before them. And
Joab's garment that he had put on was girded unto
him, and upon it a girdle with a sword fastened upon
his loins in the sheath thereof; and as he went forth it
fell out. And Joab said to Amasa: — "Art thou in
health, my brother?" And Joab took Amasa by the
beard with the right hand to kiss him. But Amasa
took no heed to the sword that was In Joab's hand :
so he smote him therewith in the fifth rib, and shed
out his bowels to the ground, and struck him not
again ; and he died. So Joab and Abishai his brother
pursued after Sheba the son of Bichri. And one of
Joab's men stood by him, and said : — " He that favour-
eth Joab, and he that is for David, let him go after
Jcab. " And Amasa wallowed in blood in the midst of
the highway. And when the man saw that all the people
stood still, he removed Amasa out of the highway into
the field, and cast a cloth upon him, when he saw that
every one that came by him stood still. When he was
removed out of the highway, all the people went on after
Joab, to pursue after Sheba the son of Bichri. And he
went through all the tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to
XX. 15— xxi. 2] II. SAMUEL 105
Beth-maachah, and all the Berites : and they were
gathered together and went also after him. And they
came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-maachah, and
they cast up a mound against the city, and it stood
against the rampart : and all the people that were with
Joab battered the wall, to throw it down.
Then cried a wise woman out of the city : — " Hear,
hear; say, I pray you, unto Joab, Come near hither,
that I may speak with thee." And when he was come
near unto her, the woman said: — "Art thou Joab?"
And he answered : — " I am he. " Then she said unto
him : — " Hear the words of thine handmaid." And he
answered : — " I do hear." Then she spake, saying : —
" They were wont to speak in old time, saying. They
shall surely ask counsel at Abel : and so they ended the
matter. I am one of them that are peaceable and faith-
ful in Israel : thou seekest to destroy a city and a mother
in Israel : why wilt thou swallow up the inheritance
of the Lord?" And Joab answered and said: — " Far
be it, far be it from me, that I should swallow up or
destroy. The matter is not so : but a man of mount
Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted
up his hand against the king, even against David :
deliver him only, and I will depart from the city." And
the woman said unto Joab: — " Behold, his head shall
be thrown to thee over the wall." Then the woman
went unto all the people in her wisdom. And they cut
off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and cast it out
to Joab. And he blew a trumpet, and they retired from
the city, every man to his tent. And Joab returned to
Jerusalem unto the king.
Now Joab was over all the host of Israel : and Benaiah
the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and over
the Pelethites : and Adoram was over the tribute : and
Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder : and Sheva
was scribe : and Zadok and Abiathar were the priests :
and Ira also the Jairite was a chief ruler about David.
Then there was a famine in the days of David three
years, year after year; and David enquired of the Lord.
And the Lord answered : — " It is for Saul, and for his
bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites." And
the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them ; (now
E 2
io6 II. SAMUEL [xxi. 3-13
the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but
of the remnant of the Amorites ; and the children of
Israel had sworn unto them : and Saul sought to slay
them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)
Wherefore David said unto the Gibeonites : — ' ' What
shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make the
atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of the
Lord?" And the Gibeonites said unto him: — "We
will have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house ;
neither for us shalt thou kill any man in Israel." And
he said : — " What ye shall say, that will I do for you."
And they answered the king : — " The man that con-
sumed us, and that devised against us that we should
be destroyed from remaining in any of the coasts of
Israel, let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us,
and we will hang them up unto the Lord in Gibeah of
Saul, the chosen of the Lord." And the king said : —
"I will give them." But the king spared Mephibo-
sheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of
the Lord's oath that was between them, between David
and Jonathan the son of Saul. But the king took the
two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bare
unto Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth ; and the five
sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought
up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite : and
he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and
they hanged them in the hill before the Lord : and they
fell all seven together, and were put to death in the
days of harvest, in the first days, in the beginning of
barley harvest.
And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and
spread it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of
harvest until water dropped upon them out of heaven,
and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them
by day, nor the beasts of the field by night. And it
was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the
concubine of Saul, had done. And David went and
took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his
son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, which had stolen
them from the street of Beth-shan, where the Philistines
had hanged them, when the Philistines had slain Saul
in Gilboa : and he brought up from thence the bones of
xxi. 14 — xxii. 3] II. SAMUEL 107
Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son ; and they
gathered the bones of them that were hanged. And the
bones of Saul and Jonathan his son buried they in the
country of Benjamin in Zelah, in the sepulchre of Kish
his father : and they performed all that the king com-
manded. And after that God was intreated for the land.
Moreover the Philistines had yet war again with
Israel; and David went down, and his servants with
him, and fought against the Philistines : and David
waxed faint. And Ishbi-benob, which was of the sons
of the giant, the weight of whose spear weighed three
hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded
with a new sword, thought to have slain David. But
Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote
the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David
sware unto him, saying : — " Thou shalt go no more out
with us to battle, that thou quench not the light of
Israel. "
And it came to pass after this, that there was again
a battle with the Philistines at Gob : then Sibbechai the
Hushathite slew Saph, which was of the sons of the
giant. And there was again a battle in Gob with the
Philistines, where Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim,
a Beth-lehemite, slew Goliath the Gittite, the staff
of whose spear was like a weaver's beam. And
there was yet a battle in Gath, where was a
man of great stature, that had on every hand
six fingers, and on every foot six toes, four and
twenty in number ; and he also was born to the giant.
And when he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimeah
the brother of David slew him. These four were born
to the giant in Gath, and fell by the hand of David, and
by the hand of his servants.
And David spake unto the Lord the words of this
song in the day that the Lord had delivered him out
of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of
Saul : and he said : —
The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my
deliverer ;
The God of my rock ; in Him will I trust :
My shield, and the horn of my salvation,
my high tower, and my refuge,
io8 11. SAMUEL [xxii. 4-19
My Saviour; Thou savest me from violence.
I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be
praised :
So shall I be saved from mine enemies.
When the waves of death compassed me,
The floods of ungodly men made me afraid ;
The sorrows of Sheol compassed me about ;
The snares of death came over me ;
In my distress I called upon the Lord,
And cried to my God :
And He did hear my voice out of His temple.
And my cry did enter into His ears.
Then the earth shook and trembled ;
The foundations of heaven moved
And shook, because He was wroth.
There went up a smoke out of His nostrils.
And fire out of His mouth devoured ;
Coals were kindled by it.
He bowed the heavens also, and came down ;
And darkness was under His feet.
And He rode upon a cherub, and did fly :
And He was seen upon the wings of the wind.
And He made darkness pavilions round about
Him,
Dark waters, and thick clouds of the skies.
Through the brightness before Him
Were coals of fire kindled.
The Lord thundered from heaven,
And the Most High uttered His voice.
And He sent out arrows, and scattered them;
Lightning, and discomfited them.
And the channels of the sea appeared.
The foundations of the world were discovered,
At the rebuking of the Lord,
At the blast of the breath of His nostrils.
He sent from above, He took me ;
He drew me out of many waters ;
He delivered me from my strong enemy,
And from them that hated me : for they were too
strong for me.
They fell upon me in the day of my calamity :
But the Lord was my stay.
xxii. 20-35] 11. SAMUEL 109
He brought me forth also into a large place :
He delivered me, because He delighted in
me.
The Lord rewarded me according to my right-
eousness :
According to the cleanness of my hands hath He
recompensed me.
For I have kept the ways of the Lord,
And have not wickedly departed from my God.
For all His judgments were before me :
And as for His statutes, I did not depart from
them.
I was also upright before Him,
And have kept myself from mine iniquity.
Therefore the Lord hath recompensed me ac-
cording to my righteousness ;
According to my cleanness in His eye-sight.
With the merciful Thou wilt shew Thyself merci-
ful,
And with the upright man Thou wilt shew Thy-
self upright.
With the pure Thou wilt shew Thyself pure ;
And with the froward Thou wilt shew Thyself
froward.
And the afflicted people Thou wilt save :
But Thine eyes are upon the haughty, that Thou
mayest bring them down.
For Thou art my lamp, O Lord :
And the Lord will lighten my darkness.
For by Thee I have run through a troop :
By my God have I leaped over a wall.
As for God, His way is perfect;
The word of the Lord is tried :
He is a buckler to all them that trust in Him.
For who is God, save the Lord?
And who is a rock, save our God?
God is my strength and power :
And He maketh my way perfect.
He maketh my feet like hinds' feet;
And setteth me upon my high places.
He teacheth my hands to war ;
So that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.
no II. SAMUEL [xxii. 36-49
Thou hast also given me the shield of Thy
salvation :
And Thy gentleness hath made me great.
Thou hast enlarged my steps under me;
So that my feet did not slip.
I have pursued mine enemies, and destroyed
them ;
And turned not again until I had consumed
them.
And I have consumed them, and wounded them,
that they could not arise :
Yea, they are fallen under my feet.
For Thou hast girded me with strength to battle :
Them that rose up against me hast Thou subdued
under me.
Thou hast also given me the necks of mine
enemies,
That I might destroy them that hate me.
They looked, but there was none to save;
Even unto the Lord, but He answered them not.
Then did I beat them as small as the dust of the
earth,
I did stamp them as the mire of the street, and
did spread them abroad.
Thou also hast delivered me from the strivings
of my people.
Thou hast kept me to be head of the heathen :
A people which I knew not shall serve me.
Strangers shall submit themselves unto me :
As soon as they hear, they shall be obedient unto
me.
Strangers shall fade away.
And they shall be afraid out of their close places.
The Lord liveth ; and blessed be my rock ;
And exalted be the God of the rock of my salva-
tion.
It is God that avengeth me.
And that bringeth down the people under me,
And that bringeth me forth from mine enemies :
Thou also hast lifted me up on high above them
that rose up against me :
Thou hast delivered me from the violent man.
xxii. 50 — xxiii. 9] II. SAMUEL 11 1
Therefore I will give thanks unto Thee, O Lord,
among the heathen,
And I will sing praises unto Thy name.
He is the tower of salvation for His king :
And sheweth mercy to His anointed,
Unto David, and to his seed for evermore.
Now these be the last words of David.
David the son of Jesse said.
And the man who was raised up on high said.
The anointed of the God of Jacob,
And the sweet psalmist of Israel : —
The Spirit of the Lord spake by me,
And His word was in my tongue.
The God of Israel said,
The Rock of Israel spake to me.
He that ruleth over men must be just.
Ruling in the fear of God.
And he shall be as the light of the morning, vvhen
the sun riseth ;
E\^en a morning without clouds ;
As the tender grass springing out of the earth.
By clear shining after rain.
For is not my house so with God?
For He hath made with me an everlasting cove-
nant.
Ordered in all things, and sure :
For all my salvation and all my desire.
Will He not make it to grow?
But the sons of Belial shall be all of them as
thorns thrust away.
Because they cannot be taken with hands :
But the man that shall touch them
Must be fenced with iron and the staff of a
spear;
And they shall be utterly burned with fire in their
place.
These be the names of the mighty men whom David
had : The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among
the captains ; the same was Adino the Eznite : he lift up
his spear agfainst eight hundred, whom he slew at one
time. And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the
Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when
112 II. SAMUEL [xxiii. 10-22
they defied the Philistines that were there gathered to-
gether to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away :
he arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was
weary, and his hand clave unto the sword : and the Lord
wrought a great victory that day ; and the people re-
turned after him only to spoil. And after him was Sham-
mah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines
were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece
of ground full of lentiles : and the people fled from the
Philistines. But he stood in the midst of the ground,
and defended it, and slew the Philistines : and the Lord
wrought a great victory.
And three of the thirty chief went down, and came
to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam :
and the troop of the Philistines pitched in the valley of
Rephaim. And David was then in an hold, and the
garrison of the Philistines was then in Beth-lehem.
And David longed, and said: — "Oh that one would
give me drink of the water of the well of Beth-lehem,
which is by the gate !" And the three mighty men brake
through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out
of the well of Beth-lehem, that was by the gate, and
took it, and brought it to David : nevertheless he would
not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord.
And he said: — "Be it far from me, O Lord, that I
should do this : is not this the blood of the men that
went in jeopardy of their lives?" therefore he would not
drink it. These things did these three mighty men.
And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah,
was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear
against three hundred, and slew them, and had a name
among the three. Was he not most honourable of
three? therefore he was their captain: howbeit he
attained not unto the first three.
And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant
man, of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew the
two sons of Ariel of Moab : he went down also and slew
a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow : and he slew
an Egyptian, a goodly man :' and the Egyptian had a
spear in his hand ; but he went down to him with a staff,
and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and
slew him with his own spear. These things did Benaiah
xxiii. 23— xxiv. 6] II. SAMUEL 113
the son of Jehoiada, and had the name among three
mighty men. He was more honourable than the thirty,
but he attained not to the first three. And David set
him over his guard.
Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty ;
Elhanan the son of Dodo of Beth-lehem, Shammah the
Harodite, Elika the Harodite, Helez the Paltite, Ira the
son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abiezer the Anethothite,
Mebunnai the Hushathite, Zalmon the Ahohite, Maha-
rai the Netophathite, Heleb the son of Baanah, a Neto-
phathite, Ittai the son of Ribai out of Gibeah of the
children of Benjamin, Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai
of the brooks of Gaash, Abi-albon the Arbathite, Az-
maveth the Barhumite, Eliahba the Shaalbonite, of
the sons of Jashen, Jonathan, Shammah the Hararite,
Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite, Ehphelet the son
of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son
of Ahithophel the Gilonite, Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai
the Arbite, Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the
Gadite, Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite,
armourbearer to Joab the son of Zeruiah, Ira an Ithrite,
Gareb an Ithrite, Uriah the Hittite : thirty and seven
in all.
And again the anger of the Lord was kindled against
Israel, and He moved David against them to say :• —
"Go, number Israel and Judah." For the king said
to Joab the captain of the host, which was with him : —
" Go now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan
even to Beer-sheba, and number ye the people, that I
may know the number of the people." And Joab said
unto the king : — " Now the Lord thy God add unto the
people, how many soever they be, an hundredfold, and
that the eyes of my lord the king may see it : but why
doth my lord the king delight in this thing?" Not-
withstanding the king's word prevailed against Joab,
and against the captains of the host. And Joab and
the captains of the host went out from the presence of
the king, to number the people of Israel.
And they passed over Jordan, and pitched in Aroer,
on the right side of the city that lieth in the midst of
the river of Gad, and toward Jazer : then they came to
Gilead, and to the land of Tahtim-hodshi ; and they
114 II. SAMUEL [xxiv. 7-17
came to Dan-jaan, and about to Zidon, and came to the
strong- hold of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Hivites,
and of the Canaanites : and they went out to the south
of Judah, even to Beer-sheba. So when they had gone
throug-h all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the
end of nine months and twenty days. And Joab gave
up the sum of the number of the people unto the king :
and there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant
men that drew the sword ; and the men of Judah were
five hundred thousand men.
And David's heart smote him after that he had num-
bered the people. And David said unto the Lord : — " I
have sinned greatly in that I have done : and now, I
beseech Thee, O Lord, take away the iniquity of Thy
servant; for I have done very foolishly." And when
David rose up in the morning, the word of the Lord
came unto the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying : —
" Go and say unto David, Thus saith the Lord, I offer
thee three things; choose thee one of them, that I rnay
do it unto thee."" So Gad came to David, and told him,
and said unto him: — "Shall seven years of famine
come unto thee in thy land? or wilt thou flee three
months before thine enemies, while they pursue thee?
or that there be three days' pestilence in thy land? now
advise, and see what answer I shall return to Him that
sent me." And David said unto Gad: — " I am in a
great strait : let us fall now into the hand of the Lord ;
for His mercies are great : and let me not fall into the
hand of man." So the Lord sent a pestilence upon
Israel from the morning even to the time appointed :
and there died of the people from Dan even to Beer-
sheba seventy thousand men. And when the angel
stretched out his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the
Lord repented Him of the evil, and said to the angel that
destroyed the people : — " It is enough : stay now thine
hand." And the angel of the Lord was by the thresh-
ing-place of Araunah the Jebusite. And David spake
unto the Lord when he saw the angel that smote the
people, and said : — " Lo, I have sinned, and I have done
wickedly: but these sheep, what have they done? let
Thine hand, I pray Thee, be against me, and against my
father's house."
xxiv. 18-25] II. SAMUEL 115
And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him :
— " Go up, rear an altar unto the Lord in the threshing-
floor of Araunah the Jebusite. " And David, according
to the saying of Gad, went up as the Lord commanded.
And Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants
coming on toward him : and Araunah went out, and
bowed himself before the king on his face upon the
ground. And Araunah said : — " Wherefore is my lord
the king come to his servant?" And David said: —
"To buy the threshingfloor of thee, to build an altar
unto the Lord, that the plague may be stayed from the
people." And Araunah said unto David: — "Let my
lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto
him : behold, here be oxen for burnt sacrifice, and
threshing instruments and other instruments of the oxen
for wood. All this, O king, doth Araunah give unto
the king." And Araunah said unto the king : — " The
Lord thy God accept thee." And the king said unto
Araunah: — " Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at
a price : neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the
Lord my God of that which doth cost me nothing." So
David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty
shekels of silver. And David built there an altar unto
the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offer-
ings. So the Lord was intreated for the land, and the
plague was stayed from Israel.
THE FIRST BOOK OF THE KINGS
Now king David was old and stricken in years ; and
they covered him with clothes, but he gat no heat.
Wherefore his servants said unto him : — " Let there be
sought for my lord the king a young virgin : and let her
stand before the king, and let her cherish him, and let
her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the king may get
heat." So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all
the coasts of Israel, and found Abishag a Shunammite,
and brought her to the king. And the damsel was
very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to
him : but the king knew her not.
Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself,
saying: — "I will be king:" and he prepared him
chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.
And his father had not displeased him at any time in
saying : — " Why hast thou done so?" and he also was
a very goodly man ; and his mother bare him after Absa-
lom. And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah,
and with Abiathar the priest : and they following Ado-
nijah helped him. But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah
the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and
Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men which belonged
to David, were not with Adonijah. And Adonijah slew
sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the stone of Zoheleth,
which is by En-rogel, and called all his brethren the
king's sons, and all the men of Judah the king's serv-
ants : but Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the
mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not.
W' herefore Nathan spake unto Bath-sheba the mother of
Solomon, saying: — "Hast thou not heard that Ado-
nijah the son of Haggith doth reign, and David our
lord knoweth it not? Now therefore come, let me, I
pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine
own life, and the life of thy son Solomon. Go and get
thee in unto king David, and say unto him. Didst not
thou, my lord, O king, swear unto thine handmaid,
ii6
i. 14-28] I. KINGS 117
saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after
me, and he shall sit upon my throne? why then doth
Adonijah reign? Behold, while thou yet talkest there
with the king, I also will come in after thee, and con-
firm thy words."
And Bath-sheba went in unto the king into the
chamber : and the king was very old ; and Abishag the
Shunammite ministered unto the king. And Bath-sheba
bowed, and did obeisance unto the king. And the king
said: — "What wouldest thou?" And she said unto
him: — "My lord, thou swarest by the Lord thy God
unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son
shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne.
And now, behold, Adonijah reigneth ; and now, my lord
the king, thou knowest it not : and he hath slain oxen
and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called
all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and
Joab the captain of the host : but Solomon thy servant
hath he not called. And thou, my lord, O king, the
eyes of all Israel are upon thee, that thou shouldest tell
them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king
after him. Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my
lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and
my son Solomon shall be counted offenders." And, lo,
while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet
also came in. And they told the king, saying : —
" Behold Nathan the prophet." And when he was come
in before the king, he bowed himself before the king
with his face to the ground. And Nathan said : — " My
lord, O king, hast thou said, Adonijah shall reign after
me, and he shall sit upon my throne? For he is gone
down this day, and hath slain oxen and fat cattle and
sheep in abundance, and hath called all the king's sons,
and the captains of the host, and Abiathar the priest;
and, behold, they eat and drink before him, and say,
God save king Adonijah. But me, even me thy serv-
ant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of
Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon, hath he not called.
Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast
not shewed it unto thy servant, who should sit on the
throne of my lord the king after him?"
Then king David answered and said : — " Call me
ii8 I. KINGS [i. 29-42
Bath-sheba." And she came into the king's presence,
and stood before the king. And the king sware, and
said : — " As the Lord Hveth, that hath redeemed my soul
out of distress, even as I sware unto thee by the Lord
God of Israel, saying. Assuredly Solomon thy son shall
reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my
stead; even so will I certainly do this day." Then Bath-
sheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did rever-
ence to the king, and said : — " Let my lord king David
live for ever." And king David said: — "Call me
Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah
the son of Jehoiada. " And they came before the king.
The king also said unto them : — " Take with you the
servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to
ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon :
and let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint
him there king over Israel : and blow ye with the
trumpet, and say, God save king Solomon. Then ye
shall come up after him, that he may come and sit
upon my throne ; for he shall be king in my stead : and
I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over
Judah. " And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered
the king, and said : — " Amen : the Lord God of my lord
the king say so too. As the Lord hath been with my
lord the king, even so be He with Solomon, and make
his throne greater than the throne of my lord king
David."
So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and
the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride
upon king David's mule, and brought him to Gihon.
And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the
tabernacle, and anointed Solomon, And they blew the
trumpet; and all the people said: — "God save king
Solomon." And all the people came up after him, and
the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy,
so that the earth rent with the sound of them. And
Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it
as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab
heard the sound of the trumpet, he said : — " Wherefore
is this noise of the city being in an uproar?" And while
he yet spake, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the
i. 43_ii. 3] I. KINGS 119
priest came : and Adonijah said unto him : — " Come in ;
for thou art a vaUant man, and bringest good tidings."
And Jonathan answered and said to xA.donijah : — " Verily
our lord king David hath made Solomon king. And the
king hath sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan
the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the
Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have caused
him to ride upon the king's mule : and Zadok the priest
and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in
Gihon : and they are come up from thence rejoicing, so
that the city rang again. This is the noise that ye have
heard. And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the
kingdom. And moreover the king's servants came to
bless our lord king David, saying, God make the name
of Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne
greater than thy throne. And the king bowed himself
upon the bed. And also thus said the king. Blessed be
the Lord God of Israel, which hath given one to sit on
my throne this day, mine eyes even seeing it."
And all the guests that were with Adonijah were
afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way. And
Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and
went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. And
it was told Solomon, saying: — "Behold, Adonijah
feareth king Solomon : for, lo, he hath caught hold on
the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear
unto me to-day that he will not slay his servant with the
sword." And Solomon said: — " If he will shew him-
self a worthy man, there shall not an hair of him fall to
the earth : but if wickedness shall be found in him, he
shall die." So king Solomon sent, and they brought
him down from the altar. And he came and bowed
himself to king Solomon : and Solomon said unto
him : — " Go to thine house."
Now the days of David drew nigh that he should
die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying: — " I go
the way of all the earth : be Jthou strong therefore, and
shew thyself a man ; and keep the charge of the Lord
thy God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, and
His commandments, and His judgments, and His testi-
monies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou
mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever
120 I. KINGS [ii. 4-16
thou turnest thyself : that the Lord may continue His
word which He spake concerning me, saying, If thy
children take heed to their way, to walk before Me in
truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there
shall not fail thee (said He) a man on the throne of
Israel. Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son
of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two cap-
tains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner,
and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and
shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war
upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his
shoes that were on his feet. Do therefore according to
thy wisdom, and let not his hoar head go down to the
grave in peace. But shew kindness unto the sons of
Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be of those that eat
at thy table : for so they came to me when I fled because
of Absalom thy brother. And, behold, thou hast with
thee Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of Bahurim,
which cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when
I went to Mahanaim : but he came down to meet me at
Jordan, and I sware to him by the Lord, saying, I will
not put thee to death with the sword. Now therefore
hold him not guiltless : for thou art a wise man, and
knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him ; but his
hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood."
So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the
city of David. And the days that David reigned over
Israel were forty years : seven years reigned he in
Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jeru-
salem.
Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his
father; and his kingdom was established greatly. And
Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bath-sheba the
mother of Solomon. And she said : — " Comest thou
peaceably?" And he said: — "Peaceably." He said
moreover : — "I have somewhat to say unto thee." And
she said : — " Say on." And he said : — " Thou knowest
that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their
faces on me, that I should reign : hovvbeit the kingdom
is turned about, and is become my brother's : for it was
his from the Lord. And now I ask one petition of thee,
deny me not." And she said unto him : — " Say on."
ii. 17-29] I. KINGS 121
And he said : — " Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the
king, (for he will not say thee nay,) that he give me
Abishag the Shunammite to wife." And Bath-sheba
said: — "Well; I will speak for thee unto the king."
Bath-sheba therefore went unto king Solomon, to speak
unto him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet
her, and bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his
throne, and caused a seat to be set for the king's
mother ; and she sat on his right hand. Then she said : —
" I desire one small petition of thee; I pray thee, say
me not nay." And the king said unto her : — " Ask on,
my mother: for I will not say thee nay." And she
said : — " Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Ado-
nijah thy brother to wife." And king Solomon an-
swered and said unto his mother: — "And why dost
thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ask
for him the kingdom also; for he is mine elder brother;
even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab
the son of Zeruiah. " Then king Solomon sware by
the Lord, saying : — " God do so to me, and more also,
if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own
life. Now therefore, as the Lord liveth, which hath
established me, and set me on the throne of David my
father, and who hath made me an house, as he pro-
mised, Adonijah shall be put to death this day." And
king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of
Jehoiada ; and he fell upon him that he died.
And unto Abiathar the priest said the king : — " Get
thee to Anathoth, unto thine own fields ; for thou art
worthy of death : but I will not at this time put thee to
death, because thou barest the ark of the Lord God
before David my father, and because thou hast been
afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted." So
Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto
the Lord ; that he might fulfil the word of the Lord,
which He spake concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.
Then tidings came to Joab : for Joab had turned after
Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And
Joab fled unto the tabernacle of the Lord, and caught
hold on the horns of the altar. And it was told king
Solomon : — " Joab is fled unto the tabernacle of the
Lord; and, behold, he is by the altar." Then Solomon
122 I. KINGS [ii. 30-41
sent Benalah the son of Jehoiada, saying: — " Go, fall
upon him." And Benaiah came to the tabernacle of
the Lord, and said unto him : — " Thus saith the king,
Come forth." And he said: — "Nay; but I will die
here." And Benaiah brought the king word again,
saying: — "Thus saith Joab, and thus he answered
me." And the king said unto him : — " Do as he hath
said, and fall upon him, and bury him ; that thou
mayest take away the innocent blood, which Joab shed,
from me, and from the house of my father. And the
Lord shall return his blood upon his own head, who
fell upon two men more righteous and better than he,
and slew them with the sword, my father David not
knowing thereof, to wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain
of the host of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, cap-
tain of the host of Judah. Their blood shall therefore
return upon the head of Joab, and upon the head of
his seed for ever : but upon David, and upon his seed,
and upon his house, and upon his throne, shall there
be peace for ever from the Lord." So Benaiah the son
of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and slew him :
and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness.
And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his
room over the host : and Zadok the priest did the king
put in the room of Abiathar.
And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said
unto him: — "Build thee an house in Jerusalem, and
dwell there, and go not forth thence any whither. For
it shall be, that on the day thou goest out, and passest
over the brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that
thou shalt surely die : thy blood shall be upon thine own
head." And Shimei said unto the king: — "The say-
ing is good : as my lord the king hath said, so will
thy servant do." And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many
days. And it came to pass at the end of three years,
that two of the servants of Shimei ran away unto Achish
son of Maachah king of Gath. And they told Shimei, say-
ing : — " Behold, thy servants be in Gath." And Shimei
arose, and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish
to seek his servants : and Shimei went, and brought his
servants from Gath. And it was told Solomon that
Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and was come
ii. 42— iii. 8] I. KINGS 123
again. And the king sent and called for Shimei, and
said unto him : — " Did I not make thee to swear by the
Lord, and protested unto thee, saying, Know for a
certain, on the day thou goest out, and walkest abroad
any whither, that thou shalt surely die? and thou saidst
unto me. The word that I have heard is good. Why
then hast thou not kept the oath of the Lord, and the
commandment that I have charged thee with?" The
king said moreover to Shimei: — "Thou knowest all
the wickedness which thine heart is privy to, that thou
didst to David my father : therefore the Lord shall
return thy wickedness upon thine own head ; and king
Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall
be established before the Lord for ever." So the king
commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada ; which went
out, and fell upon him, that he died. And the kingdom
was established in the hand of Solomon.
And Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of
Egypt, and took Pharaoh's daughter, and brought her
into the city of David, until he had made an end of build-
ing his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the
wall of Jerusalem round about. Only the people sacri-
ficed in high places, because there was no house built
unto the name of the Lord, until those days. And
Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of
David his father : only he sacrificed and burnt incense in
high places. And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice
there ; for that was the great high place : a thousand
burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. In
Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by
night : and God said : — " Ask what I shall give thee."
And Solomon said : — " Thou hast shewed unto Thy
servant David my father great mercy, according as he
walked before Thee in truth, and in righteousness, and
in uprightness of heart with Thee ; and Thou hast kept
for him this great kindness, that Thou hast given him
a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. And now,
0 Lord my God, Thou hast made Thy servant king in-
stead of David my father : and I am but a little child :
1 know not how to go out or come in. And Thy servant
is in the midst of Thy people which Thou hast chosen, a
great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for
124 I- KINGS [iii. 9-22
multitude. Give therefore Thy servant an understanding-
heart to judge Thy people, that I may discern between
good and bad : for who is able to judge this Thy so great
a people?" And the speech pleased the Lord, that
Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto
him: — " Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast
not asked for thyself long life ; neither hast asked riches
for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies ;
but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern
judgment ; behold, I have done according to thy words :
lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding
heart; so that there was none like thee before thee,
neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
And I have also given thee that which thou hast not
asked, both riches, and honour : so that there shall not
be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.
And if thou wilt walk in My ways, to keep My statutes
and My commandments, as thy father David did walk,
then I will lengthen thy days." And Solomon awoke;
and, behold, it was a dream. And he came to Jeru-
salem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the
Lord, and offered up burnt offerings, and offered peace
offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.
Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto
the king, and stood before him. And the one woman
said: — "O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one
house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the
house. And it came to pass the third day after that
I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also :
and we were together; there was no stranger with
us in the house, save we two in the house. And this
woman's child died in the night; because she over-
laid it. And she arose at midnight, and took my son
from beside me, while thine handmaid slept, and laid
it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom.
And when I rose in the morning to give my child
suck, behold, it was dead : but when I had considered
it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, which
I did bear." And the other woman said: — "Nay;
but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son."
And this said: — "No; but the dead is thy son, and
the living is my son." Thus they spake before the
iii. 23 — iv. 13] I. KINGS 125
king. Then said the king- : — " The one saith, This
is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead : and
the other saith, Nay; but thy son is the dead, and
my son is the living." And the king said: — " Bring
me a sword." And they brought a sword before
the king. And the king said : — " Divide the living
child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the
other." Then spake the woman whose the living child
was unto the king, for her bowels yearned upon her
son, and she said :— " O my lord, give her the living
child, and in no wise slay it." But the other said: —
" Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it." Then
the king answered and said: — "Give her the living
child, and in no wise slay it : she is the mother thereof."
And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had
judged ; and they feared the king : for they saw that
the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.
So king Solomon was king over all Israel. And these
were the princes which he had ; Azariah the son of
Zadok the priest, Elihoreph and Ahiah, the sons of
Shisha, scribes ; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the
recorder. And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over
the host : and Zadok and Abiathar were the priests : and
Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers : and
Zabud the son of Nathan was principal officer, and the
king's friend : and Ahishar was over the household : and
Adoniram the son of Abda was over the tribute.
And Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, which
provided victuals for the king and his household : each
man his month in a year made provision. And these are
their names : Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim :
Ben-dekar, in Makaz, and in Shaalbim, and Beth-she-
mesh, and Elon-beth-hanan : Ben-hesed, in Aruboth ; to
him pertained Sochoh, and all the land of Hepher : Ben-
abinadab, in all the region of Dor ; which had Taphath
the daughter of Solomon to wife : Baana the son of
Ahilud ; to him pertained Taanach and Megiddo, and all
Beth-shean, which is by Zartanah beneath Jezreel, from
Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as beyond Jokneam :
Ben-geber, in Ramoth-gilead ; to him pertained the
towns of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead ;
to him also pertained the region of Argob, which is
126 I. KINGS [iv. 14-32
in Bashan, threescore great cities with walls and brasen
bars : Ahinadab the son of Iddo had Mahanaim : Ahim-
aaz was in NaphtaU ; he also took Basemath the
daughter of Solomon to wife : Baanah the son of
Hushai was in Asher and in Aloth : Jehoshaphat the son
of Paruah, in Issachar : Shimei the son of Elah, in
Benjamin : Geber the son of Uri was in the country of
Gilead, in the country of Sihon king of the Amorites,
and of Og king of Bashan ; and he was the only officer
which was in the land. Judah and Israel were many,
as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and
drinking, and making merry.
And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river
unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of
Egypt : they brought presents, and served Solomon all
the days of his life. And Solomon's provision for one
day was thirty measures of fine flour, and threescore
measures of meal, ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out
of the pastures, and an hundred sheep, beside harts,
and roebucks, and fallowdeer, and fatted fowl. For he
had dominion over all the region on this side the river,
from Tiphsah even to Gaza, over all the kings on this
side the river : and he had peace on all sides round
about him. And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every
man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan
even to Beer-sheba, all the days of Solomon. And
Solomon had forty thousand stalls for horses for his
chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. And those
officers provided victual for king Solomon, and for all
that came unto king Solomon's table, every man in
his month : they lacked nothing. Barley also and straw
for the horses and dromedaries brought they unto the
place where it should be, every man according to his
charge.
And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding
exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the
sand that is on the sea shore. And Solomon's wisdom
excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east
country, and all the wisdom of Egypt. For he was
wiser than all men ; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and
Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol :
and his fame was in all nations round about. And he
iv. 33— V. lo] I. KINGS 127
spake three thousand proverbs : and his song-s were a
thousand and five. And he spake of trees, from the
cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that
spring-eth out of the wall : he spake also of beasts, and
of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes. And
there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon,
from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his
wisdom.
And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solo-
mon ; for he had heard that they had anointed him king
in the room of his father : for Hiram was ever a lover
of David. And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying: —
" Thou knowest how that David my father could not
build an house unto the name of the Lord his God for
the wars which were about him on every side, until
the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. But
now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every
side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occur-
rent. And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto
the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord spake unto
David my father, saying. Thy son, whom I will set upon
thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto
My name. Now therefore command thou that they
hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon ; and my servants
shall be with thy servants : and unto thee will I give
hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt ap-
point : for thou knowest that there is not among us any
that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians."
And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of
Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said : — " Blessed
be the Lord this day, which hath given unto David a
wise son over this great people." And Hiram sent to
Solomon, saying: — "I have considered the things
which thou sentest to me for : and I will do all thy
desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber
of fir. My servants shall bring them down from Leba-
non unto the sea : and I will make them into rafts to go
by sea unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and
will cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt
receive them : and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in
giving food for my household." So Hiram gave Solo-
mon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.
128 I. KINGS [v. II— vi. 7
And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of
wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures
of pure oil ; thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.
And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as He promised
him : and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon ;
and they two made a league together.
And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel ; and
the levy was thirty thousand men. And he sent them
to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses : a month
they were in Lebanon, and two months at home : and
Adoniram w^as over the levy. And Solomon had three-
score and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore
thousand hewers in the mountains ; beside the chief of
Solomon's officers which were over the work, three
thousand and three hundred, which ruled over the people
that wrought in the work. And the king com.manded,
and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed
stones, to lay the foundation of the house. And Solo-
mon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them,
and the stonesquarers : so they prepared timber and
stones to build the house.
And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth
year after the children of Israel were come out of the
land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign
over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month,
that he began to build the house of the Lord. And the
house which king Solomon built for the Lord, the length
thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof
twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits.
And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty
cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth
of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof
before the house. And for the house he made windows
of narrow lights. And against the wall of the house
he built chambers round about, against the walls of the
house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle :
and he made chambers round about : the nethermost
chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six
cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad :
for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed
rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened
in the walls of the house. And the house, when it was
vi. 8-22] I. KINGS 129
in building-, was built of stone made ready before it was
brought thither ; so that there was neither hammer nor
axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it
was in building-. The door for the middle chamber was
in the right side of the house : and they went up with
winding- stairs into the middle chamber, and out of the
middle into the third. So he built the house, and finished
it; and covered the house with beams and boards of
cedar. And then he built chambers against all the
house, five cubits high: and they rested on the house
with timber of cedar.
And the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying :
— " Concerning this house which thou art in building,
if thou wilt walk in My statutes, and execute My judg-
ments, and keep all My commandments to walk in them ;
then will I perform My word with thee, which I spake
unto David thy father : and I will dwell among the
children of Israel, and will not forsake My people
Israel."
So Solomon built the house, and finished it. And he
built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar,
both the floor of the house, and the walls of the ceiling :
and he covered them on the inside with wood, and
covered the floor of the house with planks of fir. And
he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house, both
the floor and the walls with boards of cedar : he even
built them for it within, even for the oracle, even for
the most holy place. And the house, that is, the temple
before the oracle, was forty cubits long. And the cedar
of the house within was carved with knops and open
flowers : all was cedar ; there v/as no stone seen. And
the oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there
the ark of the covenant of the Lord. And the oracle
in the forepart was twenty cubits in length, and twenty
cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height there-
of : and he overlaid it with pure gold ; and so covered
the altar \vhich was of cedar. So Solomon overlaid the
house within with pure gold : and he drew chains of
gold across before the oracle ; and he overlaid it with
gold. And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until
he had finished all the house : also the whole altar that
was by the oracle he overlaid with gold.
VOL. II. p
130 I. KINGS [vi. 23— vii. 2
And within the oracle he made two cherubim of oUve
tree, each ten cubits high. And five cubits was the one
wing- of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing- of
the cherub : from the uttermost part of the one wing
unto the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits.
And the other cherub was ten cubits : both the cherubim
were of one measure and one size. The height of the
one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other
cherub. And he set the cherubim within the inner
house : and they stretched forth the wings of the cheru-
bim, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall,
and the wing of the other cherub touched the other
wall ; and their wings touched one another in the midst
of the house. And he overlaid the cherubim with gold.
And he carved all the walls of the house round about
with carved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open
flowers, within and without. And the floor of the house
he overlaid with gold, within and without.
And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of
olive tree : the lintel and side posts were a fifth part
of the wall. The two doors also were of olive tree ;
and he carved upon them carvings of cherubim and palm
trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold,
and spread gold upon the cherubim, and upon the palm
trees. So also made he for the door of the temple posts
of olive tree, a fourth part of the wall. And the two
doors were of fir tree : the two leaves of the one door
were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were
folding. And he carved thereon cherubim and palm
trees and open flowers : and covered them with gold
fitted upon the carved work. And he built the inner
court with three rows of hewed stones, and a row of
cedar beams.
In the fourth year was the foundation of the house
of the Lord laid, in the month Zif : and in the eleventh
year, in the month Bui, which is the eighth month, was
the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and
according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven
years in building it.
But Solomon was building his own house thirteen
years, and he finished all his house. He built also the
house of the forest of Lebanon ; the length thereof was
vii. 3-17] I. KINGS 131
an hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifty cubits,
and the height thereof thirty cubits^ upon four rows of
cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars. And
it was covered with cedar above upon the beams, that
lay on forty five pillars, fifteen in a row. And there
were windows in three rows, and light was against light
in three ranks. And all the doors and posts were
square, with the windows : and light was against light
in three ranks. And he made a porch of pillars ; the
length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof
thirty cubits : and the porch was before them : and
pillars and a threshold before them. Then he made
a porch for the throne where he might judge, even
the porch of judgment : and it was covered with cedar
from one side of the floor to the other. And his house
where he dwelt, had another court within the porch,
which was of the like work. Solomon made also an
house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom he had taken to
wife, like unto this porch. All these were of costly
stones, according to the measures of hewed stones,
sawed with saws, within and without, even from the
foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside to-
ward the great court. And the foundation was of costly
stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and
stones of eight cubits. And above were costly stones,
even hewn stone according to measure, and cedars. And
the great court round about had three rows of hewn
stones, and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner
court of the house of the Lord, and for the porch of the
house.
And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of
Tyre. He was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali,
and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass :
and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and
cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to
king Solomon, and wrought all his work. For he cast
two pillars of brass, eighteen cubits high apiece : and a
line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about.
And he made two chapiters of molten brass, to set upon
the tops of the pillars : the height of the one chapiter
was five cubits, and the height of the other chapiter was
five cubits : and nets of checker work, and wreaths of
132 L KINGS [vii. 18-30
chain work, for the chapiters which were upon the top
of the pillars ; seven for the one chapiter, and seven
for the other chapiter. And he made the pillars, and
two rows round about upon the one network, to cover
the chapiters that were upon the top, with pomegran-
ates : and so did he for the other chapiter. And the
chapiters that were upon the top of the pillars were of
lily work in the porch, four cubits. And there were
chapiters above upon the two pillars, close by the belly
which was by the network : and the pomegranates were
two hundred in rows round about upon the other
chapiter. And he set up the pillars in the porch of the
temple : and he set up the right pillar, and called the
name thereof Jachin : and he set up the left pillar, and
called the name thereof Boaz. And upon the top of the
pillars was lily work : so was the work of the pillars
finished.
And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one
brim to the other : it was round all about, and its height
was five cubits : and a line of thirty cubits did compass
it round about. And under the brim of it round about
there were knops compassing it, ten in a cubit, com-
passing the sea round about : the knops were cast in
two rows, when it was cast. It stood upon twelve oxen,
three looking toward the north, and three looking to-
ward the west, and three looking toward the south, and
three looking toward the east : and the sea was set
above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.
And it was an hand breadth thick, and the brim thereof
was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of
lilies : it contained two thousand baths.
And he made the ten bases of brass ; four cubits was
the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth
thereof, and three cubits the height of it. And the work
of the bases was on this manner : they had borders, and
the borders were between the ledges : and on the borders
that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and
cherubim : and upon the ledges there was a base above :
and beneath the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging
work. And every base had four brasen wheels, and
plates of brass : and the four corners thereof had under-
setters : under the laver were the undersetters molten,
vii. 31-46] I. KINGS 133
with wreaths at the side of each. And the mouth of it
within the chapiter and above was a cubit : but the
mouth thereof was round after the work of the base,
a cubit and an half : and also upon the mouth of it were
graving-s with their borders, foursquare, not round. And
under the borders were four wheels ; and the axletrees
of the wheels were joined to the base : and the height of
a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit. And the work
of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel : their
axletrees, and their naves, and their felloes, and their
spokes, were all molten. And there were four under-
setters to the four corners of one base : and the under-
setters were of the very base itself. And in the top of
the base was there a round compass of half a cubit
high : and on the top of the base the ledges thereof and
the borders thereof were of the same. For on the
plates of the ledges thereof, and on the borders thereof,
he graved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, according
to the proportion of every one, and additions round
about. After this manner he made the ten bases : all
of them had one casting, one measure, and one size.
Then made he ten lavers of brass : one laver contained
forty baths : and every laver was four cubits : and upon
every one of the ten bases one laver. And he put five
bases on the right side of the house, and five on the left
side of the house : and he set the sea on the right side
of the house eastward over against the south. And
Hiram made the lavers, and the shovels, and the basons.
So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he
made king Solomon for the house of the Lord : the two
pillars, and the two bowls of the chapiters that were
on the top of the two pillars ; and the two networks, to
cover the two bowls of the chapiters which were upon
the top of the pillars ; and four hundred pomegranates
for the two networks, even two rows of pomegranates
for one network, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters
that were upon the pillars; and the ten bases, and ten
lavers on the bases ; and one sea, and twelve oxen
under the sea; and the pots, and the shovels, and the
basons : and all these vessels, which Hiram made to
king Solomon for the house of the Lord, were of bright
brass. In the plain of Jordan did the king cast them.
134 I- KINGS [vii. 47— viii. 8
in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan. And
Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because they
were exceeding- many: neither, was the weight of the
brass found out.
And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto
the house of the Lord : the altar of gold, and the table
of gold, whereupon the shewbread was, and the candle-
sticks of pure gold, five on the right side, and five on
the left, before the oracle, with the flowers, and the
lamps, and the tongs of gold, and the bowls, and the
snuffers, and the basons, and the spoons, and the censers
of pure gold ; and the hinges of gold, both for the doors
of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors
of the house, to wit, of the temple. So was ended all
the work that king Solomon made for the house of the
Lord. And Solomon brought in the things which
David his father had dedicated ; even the silver, and
the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the treasures
of the house of the Lord.
Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all
the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the
children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that
they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord
out of the city of David, which is Zion. And all the
men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon
at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh
month. And all the elders of Israel came, and the
priests took up the ark. And they brought up the ark
of the Lord, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and
all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, even
those did the priests and the Levites bring up. And
king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that
were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark,
sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor
numbered for multitude. And the priests brought in
the ark of the covenant of the Lord unto its place, into
the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even
under the wings of the cherubim. For the cherubim
spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark,
and the cherubim covered the ark and the staves thereof
above. And they drew out the staves, that the ends
of the staves were seen from the holy place before the
viii. 9-23] I. KINGS 135
oracle, and they were not seen without : and there they
are unto this day. There was nothing- in the ark save
the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb,
when the Lord made a covenant with the children of
Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. And
it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the
holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord,
so that the priests could not stand to minister because
of the cloud : for the glory of the Lord had filled the
house of the Lord.
Then spake Solomon : —
The Lord said that He would dwell in the thick
darkness.
I have surely built Thee an house to dwell in,
A settled place for Thee to abide in for ever.
And the king turned his face about, and blessed all
the congregation of Israel : (and all the congregation of
Israel stood;) and he said : — " Blessed be the Lord God
of Israel, which spake with His mouth unto David my
father, and hath with His hand fulfilled it, saying. Since
the day that I brought forth My people Israel out of
Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to
build an house, that My name might be therein ; but I
chose David to be over My people Israel. And it was
in the heart of David my father to build an house for the
name of the Lord God of Israel. And the Lord said
unto David my father, Whereas it was in thine heart
to build an house unto My name, thou didst well that
it was in thine heart. Nevertheless thou shalt not build
the house ; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy
loins, he shall build the house unto My name. And the
Lord hath performed His word that He spake, and I am
risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the
throne of Israel, as the Lord promised, and have built
an house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. And
I have set there a place for the ark, wherein is the cove-
nant of the Lord, which He made with our fathers,
when He brought them out of the land of Egypt. "
And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the
presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread
forth his hands toward heaven : and he said : — " Lord
God of Israel, there is no God like Thee, in heaven
136 I. KINGS [viii. 24-35
above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and
mercy with Thy servants that walk before Thee with all
their heart : who hast kept with Thy servant David
my father that Thou promisedst him : Thou spakest also
with Thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with Thine hand.
as it is this day. Therefore now, Lord God of Israel,
keep with Thy servant David my father that Thou
promisedst him, saying. There shall not fail thee a man
in My sight to sit on the throne of Israel ; so that thy
children take heed to their way, that they walk before
Me as thou hast walked before Me. And now, O God
of Israel, let Thy word, I pray Thee, be verified, which
Thou spakest unto Thy servant David my father. But
will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven
and heaven of heavens cannot contain Thee ; how much
less this house that I have builded? Yet have Thou
respect unto the prayer of Thy servant, and to his sup-
plication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and
to the prayer, which Thy servant prayeth before Thee
to-day : that Thine eyes may be open toward this house
night and day, even toward the place of which Thou
hast said. My name shall be there : that Thou mayest
hearken unto the prayer which Thy servant shall make
toward this place. And hearken Thou to the supplica-
tion of Thy servant, and of Thy people Israel, when they
shall pray toward this place : and hear Thou in heaven
Thy dwelling place : and when Thou hearest, forgive.
" If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an
oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath
come before Thine altar in this house : then hear Thou
in heaven, and do, and judge Thy servants, condemning
the wicked, to bring his way upon his head ; and justify-
ing the righteous, to give him according to his righteous-
ness.
" When Thy people Israel be smitten down before
the enemy, because they have sinned against Thee, and
shall turn again to Thee, and confess Thy name, and
pray, and make supplication unto Thee in this house :
then hear Thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of Thy
people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which
Thou gavest unto their fathers.
" When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because
viii. 36-47] I. KINGS 137
they have sinned against Thee ; if they pray toward
this place, and confess Thy name, and turn from their
sin, when Thou afiflictest them : then hear Thou in
heaven, and forgive the sin of Thy servants, and of Thy
people Israel, that Thou teach them the good way where-
in they should walk, and give rain upon Thy land, which
Thou hast given to Thy people for an inheritance.
" If there be in the land famine, if there be pesti-
lence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be caterpiller;
if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities ;
whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be ; what
prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or
by all Thy people Israel, which shall know every man
the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands
toward this house : then hear Thou in heaven Thy dwell-
ing place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man
according to his ways, whose heart Thou knowest; (for
Thou, even Thou only, knowest the hearts of all the
children of men ;) that they may fear Thee all the days
that they live in the land which Thou gavest unto our
fathers. Moreover concerning a stranger, that is not
of Thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country
for Thy name's sake; (for they shall hear of Thy great
name, and of Thy strong hand, and of Thy stretched out
arm ;) when he shall come and pray toward this house :
hear Thou in heaven Thy dwelling place, and do accord-
ing to all that the stranger calleth to Thee for : that all
people of the earth may know Thy name, to fear Thee,
as do Thy people Israel ; and that they may know that
this house, which I have builded, is called by Thy name.
" If Thy people go out to battle against their enemy,
whithersoever Thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto
the Lord toward the city which Thou hast chosen, and
toward the house that I have built for Thy name : then
hear Thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication,
and maintain their cause. If they sin against Thee,
(for there is no man that sinneth not,) and Thou be angry
with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they
carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy,
far or near; yet if they shall bethink themselves in the
land whither they were carried captives, and repent,
and make supplication unto Thee in the land of them
F 2
138 I. KINGS [viii. 48-59
that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned,
and have done perversely, we have committed wicked-
ness ; and so return unto Thee with all their heart, and
with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which
led them away captive, and pray unto Thee toward their
land, which Thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which
Thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for
Thy name : then hear Thou their prayer and their sup-
plication in heaven Thy dwelling- place, and maintain their
cause, and forgive Thy people that have sinned against
Thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have
transgressed against Thee, and give them compassion
before them who carried them captive, that they may
have compassion on them : for they be Thy people, and
Thine inheritance, which Thou broughtest forth out of
Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron : that
Thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of Thy
servant, and unto the supplication of Thy people Israel,
to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto Thee.
For Thou didst separate them from among all the people
of the earth, to be Thine inheritance, as Thou spakest
by the hand of Moses Thy servant, when Thou brought-
est our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God."
And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end
of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the
Lord, he arose from before the altar of the Lord, from
kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to
heaven. And he stood, and blessed all the congrega-
tion of Israel with a loud voice, saying: — "Blessed
be the Lord, that hath given rest unto His people Israel,
according to all that He promised : there hath not failed
one word of all His good promise, which He promised
by the hand of Moses His servant. The Lord our God
be with us, as He was with our fathers : let Him not
leave us, nor forsake us : that He may incline our
hearts unto Him, to walk in all His ways, and to keep
His commandments, and His statutes, and His judg-
ments, which He commanded our fathers. And let
these my words, wherewith I have made supplication
before the Lord, be nigh unto the Lord our God day
and night, that He maintain the cause of His servant,
and the cause of His people Israel at all times, as the
viii. 60— ix. 5] L KINGS 139
matter shall require : that all the people of the earth
may know that the Lord is God, and that there is none
else. Let your heart therefore be perfect with the
Lord our God, to walk in His statutes, and to keep His
commandments, as at this day."
And the king-, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice
before the Lord. And Solomon offered a sacrifice of
peace offerings, which he offered unto the Lord, two
and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty
thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of
Israel dedicated the house of the Lord. The same
day did the king hallow the middle of the court that
was before the house of the Lord : for there he offered
burnt offerings, and meal offerings, and the fat of the
peace offerings : because the brasen altar that was
before the Lord was too little to receive the burnt offer-
ings, and meal offerings, and the fat of the peace
offerings. And at that time Solomon held a feast, and
all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the
entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before
the Lord our God, seven days and seven days, even
fourteen days. On the eighth day he sent the people
away : and they blessed the king, and went unto their
tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that
the Lord had done for David his servant, and for Israel
his people.
And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the
bailding of the house of the Lord, and the king's house,
and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do,
that the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time,
as He had appeared unto him at Gibeon. And the Lord
said unto him: — "I have heard thy prayer and thy
supplication, that thou hast made before Me : I have
hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put My
name there for ever; and Mine eyes and Mine heart
shall be there perpetually. And if thou wilt walk before
Me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart,
and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have
commanded thee, and wilt keep My statutes and My
judgments : then I will establish the throne of thy
kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David
thy father, saying. There shall not fail thee a man upon
140 I. KINGS [ix. 6-19
the throne of Israel. But if ye shall at all turn from
following- Me, ye or your children, and will not keep My
commandments and My statutes which I have set before
you, but go and serve other gods, and v.'orship them :
then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have
given them ; and this house, which I have hallowed
for My name, will I cast out of My sight ; and Israel
shall be a proverb and a byword among all people : and
at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by
it shall be astonished, and shall hiss ; and they shall
say, Why hath the Lord done thus unto this land, and
to this house? And they shall answer, Because they
forsook the Lord their God, who brought forth their
fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold
upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served
them : therefore hath the Lord brought upon them all
this evil."
And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when
Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the
Lord, and the king's house, (now Hiram the king of
Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir
trees, and with gold, according to all his desire,) that
then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land
of Galilee. And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the
cities which Solomon had given him ; and they pleased
him not. And he said : — " What cities are these which
thou hast given me, my brother?" And he called them
the land of Cabul unto this day. And Hiram sent to
the king sixscore talents of gold.
And this is the reason of the levy which king Solo-
mon raised; for to build the house of the Lord, and
his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem,
and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer. For Pharaoh
king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt
it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the
city, and given it for a present unto his daughter, Solo-
mon's wife. And Solomon built Gezer, and Beth-horon
the nether, and Baalath, and Tamar in the wilderness,
in the land, and all the cities of store that Solomon
had, and cities for his chariots, and cities for his horse-
men, and that which Solomon desired to build in Jerusa-
lem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.
ix. 20— X. 6] I. KINGS 141
And all the people that were left of the Amorites,
Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were
not of the children of Israel, their children that were
left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel
also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did
Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice unto this day.
But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bond-
men : but they were men of war, and his servants, and
his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots,
and his horsemen. These were the chief of the officers
that were over Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty,
which bare rule over the people that wrought in the
work. But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the
city of David unto her house which Solomon had built
for her : then did he build Millo. And three times
in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace
offerings upon the altar which he built unto the Lord,
and he burnt incense upon the altar that was before
the Lord. So he finished the house.
And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-
geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red
Sea, in the land of Edom. And Hiram sent in the navy
his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea,
with the servants of Solomon. And ^hey came to
Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and
twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.
And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of
Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to
prove him with hard questions. And she came to Jeru-
salem with a very great train, with camels that bare
spices, and very much gold, and precious stones : and
when she was come to Solomon, she communed with
him of all that was in her heart. And Solomon told
her all her questions : there was not any thing hid from
the king, which he told her not. And when the queen
of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house
that he had built, and the meat of his table, and the
sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his minis-
ters, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his
ascent by which he went up unto the house of the Lord ;
there was no more spirit in her. And she said to the
king : — " It was a true report that I heard in mine own
142 I. KINGS [x. 7-21
land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. Howbeit I be-
lieved not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had
seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy
wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I
heard. Happy are thy men, happy are these thy serv-
ants, which stand continually before thee, and that
hear thy wisdom. Blessed be the Lord thy God, which
delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel :
because the Lord loved Israel for ever, therefore made
He thee king, to do judgment and justice." And she
gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold,
and of spices very great store, and precious stones :
there came no more such abundance of spices as these
which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon. And
the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir,
brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees,
and precious stones. And the king made of the almug
trees pillars for the house of the Lord, and for the king's
house, harps also and psalteries for singers : there came
no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day. And
king Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her
desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solo-
mon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned and
went to her own country, she and her servants.
Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one
year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold,
beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of the
traffic of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of
Arabia, and of the governors of the country. And king
Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold : six
hundred shekels of gold went to one target. And he
made three hundred shields of beaten gold ; three pound
of gold went to one shield : and the king put them in
the house of the forest of Lebanon. Moreover the king
made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the
best gold. The throne had six steps, and the top of
the throne was round behind : and there were stays on
either side on the place of the seat, and two lions stood
beside the stays. And twelve lions stood there on the
one side and on the other upon the six steps : there
was not the like made in any kingdom. And all king
Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the
X. 22— xi. 6] I. KINGS 143
vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of
pure gold ; none were of silver : it was nothing accounted
of in the days of Solomon. For the king had at sea a
navy of Tarshish with the navy of Hiram : once in
three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold,
and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth
for riches and for wisdom. And all the earth sought to
Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in
his heart. And they brought every man his present,
vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and
armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by
year. And Solomon gathered together chariots and
horsemen : and he had a thousand and four hundred
chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he be-
stowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at
Jerusalem. And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem
as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore
trees that are in the vale, for abundance. And Solomon
had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn : the
king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price.
And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six
hundred shekels of silver, and an horse for an hundred
and fifty : and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and
for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by
their means.
But king Solomon loved many strange women, to-
gether with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the
Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hit-
tites ; of the nations concerning which the Lord said unto
the children of Israel : — " Ye shall not go in to them,
neither shall they come in unto you : for surely they will
turn away your heart after their gods;" Solomon clave
unto these in love. And he had seven hundred wives,
princesses, and three hundred concubines : and his wives
turned away his heart. For it came to pass, when Solo-
mon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after
other gods : and his heart was not perfect with the Lord
his God, as was the heart of David his father. For
Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidoni-
ans, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammon-
ites. And Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord,
144 I- KINGS - [xi. 7-21
and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his
father. Then did Solomon build an high place for
Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is
before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of
the children of Ammon. And likewise did he for all
his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed
unto their gods. And the Lord was angry, with Solo-
mon, because his heart was turned from the Lord God of
Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, and had
commanded him concerning this thing, that he should
not go after other gods : but he kept not that which
the Lord commanded. Wherefore the Lord said unto
Solomon : — " Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and
thou hast not kept My covenant and My statutes, which
I have commanded theej I will surely rend the kingdom
from thee, and will give it to thy servant. Notwith-
standing in thy days I will not do it for David thy
father's sake : but I will rend it out of the hand of thy
son. Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom ;
but will give one tribe to thy son for David My servant's
sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen."
And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon,
Hadad the Edomite : he was of the king's seed in Edom.
For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and
Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the
slain, after he had smitten every male in Edom ; (for six
months did Joab remain there with all Israel, until he
had cut off every male in Edom ;) that Hadad fled,
he and certain Edomites of his father's servants with
him, to go into Egypt; Hadad being yet a little child.
And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran : and
they took men with them out of Paran, and they came
to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt ; which gave him
an house, and appointed him victuals, and gave him
land. And Hadad found great favour in the sight of
Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his
own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen. And the
sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom
Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh's house : and Genubath
was in Pharaoh's household among the sons of
Pharaoh. And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David
slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the
xi. 22-33] ^' KINGS 145
host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh: — "Let me
depart, that I may go to mine own country." Then
Pharaoh said unto him : — " But what hast thou lacked
with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine own
country?" And he answered : — " Nothing : howbeit let
me go in any wise."
And God stirred him up another adversary, Rezon
the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer
king of Zobah : and he gathered men unto him, and
became captain over a band, when David slew them of
Zobah : and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein,
and reigned in Damascus. And he was an adversary
to Israel all the days of Solomon, beside the mischief
that Hadad did : and he abhorred Israel, and reigned
over Syria.
And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of
Zereda, Solomon's servant, whose mother's name was
Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand
against the king. And this was the cause that he
lifted up his hand against the king : Solomon built
Millo, and repaired the breach of the city of David his
father. And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of
valour : and Solomon seeing the young man that he
was industrious, made him ruler over all the charge
of the house of Joseph. And it came to pass at that
time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the
prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way ; and
he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two
were alone in the field : and Ahijah caught the new gar-
ment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces : and
he said to Jeroboam : — " Take thee ten pieces : for thus
saith the Lord, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend
the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give
ten tribes to thee : (but he shall have one tribe for My
servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the
city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel :)
because that they have forsaken Me, and have wor-
shipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Che-
mosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of
the children of Ammon, and have not walked in My
ways, to do that which is right in Mine eyes, and to
keep My statutes and My judgments, as did David his
146 I. KINGS [xi. 34— xii. 6
father. Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom
out of his hand : but I will make him prince all the days
of his life for David My servant's sake, whom I chose,
because he kept My commandments and My statutes :
but I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and
will give it unto thee, even ten tribes. And unto his
son will I give one tribe, that David My servant may
have a light alway before Me in Jerusalem, the city
which I have chosen Me to put My name there. And I
will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all
that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel.
And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I com-
mand thee and wilt walk in My ways, and do that which
is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My com-
mandments, as David My servant did ; that I will be
with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for
David, and will give Israel unto thee. And I will for
this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever." Solo-
mon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam
arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt,
and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
And the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he
did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book
of the acts of Solomon? And the time that Solomon
reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.
And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in
the city of David his father : and Rehoboam his son
reigned in his stead.
And Rehoboam went to Shechem : for all Israel were
come to Shechem to make him king. And it came to
pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet
in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence
of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt ;) that
they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the
congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam,
saying: — -"Thy father made our yoke grievous: now
therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father,
and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and
we will serve thee." And he said unto them : — " De-
part yet for three days, then come again to me." And
the people departed.
And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that
xii. 7-i8] I. KINGS 147
stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and
said : — " How do ye advise that I may answer this
people?" And they spake unto him, saying: — "If
thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and
wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good
words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever."
But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they
had given him, and consulted with the young men that
were grown up with him, and which stood before him :
and he said unto them : — " What counsel give ye that
we may answer this people, who have spoken to me,
saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon
us lighter?" And the young men that were grown up
with him spake unto him, saying: — "Thus shalt thou
speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying,
Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it
lighter unto us ; thus shalt thou say unto them. My little
finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. And
now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke,
I will add to your yoke : my father hath chastised you
with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions."
So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the
third day, as the king had appointed, saying : — " Come
to me again the third day." And the king answered the
people roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that
they gave him ; and spake to them after the counsel of
the young men, saying : — " My father made your yoke
heavy, and I will add to your yoke : my father also chas-
tised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scor-
pions." Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the
people; for the cause was from the Lord, that He might
perform His saying, which the Lord spake by Ahijah the
Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat. So when
all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them,
the people answered the king, saying: — "What por-
tion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in
the son of Jesse : to your tents, O Israel : now see to
thine own house, David." So Israel departed unto
their tents. But as for the children of Israel which
dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over
them. Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was
over the tribute ; and all Israel stoned him with stones,
148 I. KINGS [xii. 19-32
that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam made speed
to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. So
Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.
And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jero-
boam was come again, that they sent and called him
unto the congregation, and made him king over all
Israel : there was none that followed the house of David,
but the tribe of Judah only.
And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he
assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Ben-
jamin, an hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men,
which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel,
to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of
Solomon. But the word of God came unto Shemaiah
the man of God, saying : — " Speak unto Rehoboam, the
son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of
Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people,
saying, Thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not go up, nor
fight against your brethren the children of Israel : return
every man to his house; for this thing is from Me."
They hearkened therefore to the word of the Lord, and
returned to depart, according to the word of the Lord.
Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of
Ephraim, and dwelt therein ; and went out from thence,
and built Penuel. And Jeroboam said in his heart : —
'* Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David :
if this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the
Lord at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people
turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of
Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam
king of Judah." Whereupon the king took counsel, and
made two calves of gold, and said unto them : — *' It is
too much for you to go up to Jerusalem : behold thy
gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of
Egypt." And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other
put he in Dan. And this thing became a sin : for the
people went to worship before each of them, even unto
Dan. And he made an house of high places, and made
priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the
sons of Levi. And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the
eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto
the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar.
xii. 33 — xiii. lo] I. KINGS 149
So did he in Beth-el, sacrificing unto the calves that he
had made : and he placed in Beth-el the priests of the
high places which he had made. So he offered upon the
altar which he had made in Beth-el the fifteenth day of
the eighth month, even in the month which he had
devised of his own heart ; and ordained a feast unto the
children of Israel : and he offered upon the altar, and
burnt incense.
And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah
by the word of the Lord unto Beth-el : and Jeroboam
stood by the altar to burn incense. And he cried against
the altar in the word of the Lord, and said : — " O altar,
altar, thus saith the Lord ; Behold, a child shall be born
unto the house of David, Josiah by name ; and upon thee
shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn
incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon
thee." And he gave a sign the same day, saying: —
" This is the sign which the Lord hath spoken; Behold
the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it
shall be poured out." And it came to pass, when king-
Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, which
had cried against the altar in Beth-el, that he put forth
his hands from the altar, saying : — " Lay hold on him."
And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up,
so that he could not pull it in again to him. The altar
also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar,
according to the sign which the man of God had given
by the word of the Lord. And the king answered and
said unto the man of God : — " Intreat now the face of
the Lord thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may
be restored me again." And the man of God besought
the Lord, and the king's hand was restored him again,
and became as it was before. And the king said unto
the man of God : — " Come home with me, and refresh
thyself, and I will give thee a reward." And the man
of God said unto the king : — " If thou wilt give me half
thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I
eat bread nor drink water in this place : for so was it
charged me by the word of the Lord, saying. Eat no
bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way
that thou camest. " So he went another way, and re-
turned not by the way that he came to Beth-el.
150 I. KINGS [xiii. 11-25
Now there dwelt an old prophet in Beth-el ; and his
sons came and told him all the works that the man of
God had done that day in Beth-el : the words which he
had spoken unto the king, them they told also to their
father. And their father said unto them: — "What
way went he?" For his sons had seen what way the
man of God went, which came from Judah. And he said
unto his sons :— " Saddle me the ass." So they saddled
him the ass : and he rode thereon, and went after the
man of God, and found him sitting- under an oak : and
he said unto him: — "Art thou the man of God that
camest from Judah?" And he said : — " I am." Then
he said unto him: — "Come home with me, and eat
bread." And he said :— "I may not return with thee,
nor go in with thee : neither will I eat bread nor drink
water with thee in this place : for it was said to me by
the word of the Lord, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink
water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou
camest." He said unto him :— " I am a prophet also
as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word
of the Lord, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine
house, that he may eat bread and drink water." But
he lied unto him. So he went back with him, and did
eat bread in his house, and drank water.
And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the
word of the Lord came unto the prophet that brought
him back : and he cried unto the man of God that came
from Judah, saying: — "Thus saith the Lord, Foras-
much as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the Lord, and
hast not kept the commandment which the Lord thy
God commanded thee, but camest back, and hast eaten
bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the
Lord did say to thee. Eat no bread, and drink no water ;
thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy
fathers." And it came to pass, after he had eaten
bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him
the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom he had brought
back. And when he was gone, a lion met him by the
way, and slew him : and his carcase was cast in the
way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also stood by the
carcase. And, behold, men passed by, and saw the car-
case cast in the way, and the lion standing by the car-
xiii. 26— xiv. 5] I. KINGS 151
case : and they came and told it in the city where the old
prophet dwelt. And when the prophet that brought him
back from the way heard thereof, he said : — " It is the
man of God, who was disobedient unto the word of the
Lord : therefore the Lord hath delivered him unto the
lion, which hath torn him, and slain him, according to
the word of the Lord, which He spake unto him. " And he
spake to his sons, saying : — " Saddle me the ass." And
they saddled it. And he went and found his carcase
cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the
carcase : the lion had not eaten the carcase, nor torn the
ass. And the prophet took up the carcase of the man
of God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back :
and the old prophet came to the city, to mourn and to
bury him. And he laid his carcase in his own grave ; and
they mourned over him, saying : — " Alas, my brother !"
And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he
spake to his sons, saying: — "When I am dead, then
bury me in the sepulchre wherein the man of God is
buried ; lay my bones beside his bones : for the saying
which he cried by the word of the Lord against the altar
in Beth-el, and against all the houses of the high places
which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to
pass."
After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil
way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests
of the high places : whosoever would, he consecrated
him, and he became one of the priests of the high places.
And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam,
even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of
the earth.
At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. And
Jeroboam said to his wife: — "Arise, I pray thee, and
disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife
of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh : behold, there is
Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king
over this people. And take with thee ten loaves, and
cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him : he shall
tell thee what shall become of the child." And Jero-
boam's wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and
came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see ;
for his eyes were set by reason of his age. And the
152 I. KINGS [xiv. 6-17
Lord said unto Ahijah : — " Behold, the wife of Jeroboam
Cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son ; for he is sick :
thus and thus shalt thou say unto her : for it shall be,
when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be
another woman. ' '
And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her
feet, as she came in at the door, that he said : — " Come
in, thou wife of Jeroboam ; why feignest thou thyself to
be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.
Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel,
Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people,
and made thee prince over My people Israel, and rent
the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave
it thee : and yet thou hast not been as My servant David,
who kept My commandments, and who followed Me
with all his heart, to do that only which was right in
Mine eyes ; but hast done evil above all that were before
thee : for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and
molten images, to provoke Me to anger, and hast cast
Me behind thy back : therefore, behold, I will bring evil
upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jero-
boam every man child, him that is shut up and left in
Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of
Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.
Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs
eat ; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the
air eat : for the Lord hath spoken it. Arise thou there-
fore, get thee to thine own house : and when thy feet
enter into the city, the child shall die. And all Israel
shall mourn for him, and bury him : for he only of Jero-
boam shall come to the grave, because in him there is
found some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel in
the house of Jeroboam. Moreover the Lord shall raise
Him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house
of Jeroboam that day : but what? even now. For the
Lord shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water,
and He shall root up Israel out of this good land, which
He gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond
the river, because they have made their Asherim, provok-
ing the Lord to anger. And He shall give Israel up be-
cause of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who
made Israel to sin." And Jeroboam's wife arose, and
xiv. 18-31] I. KINGS 153
departed, and came to Tirzah : and when she came to
the threshold of the door, the child died ; and they buried
him ; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the
word of the Lord, which He spake by the hand of His
servant Ahijah the prophet.
And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred,
and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book
of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. And the days
which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years :
and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned
in his stead.
And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah.
Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began
to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem,
the city which the Lord did choose out of all the tribes
of Israel, to put His name there. And his mother's name
was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Judah did evil in
the sight of the Lord, and they provoked Him to jealousy
with their sins which they had committed, above all that
their fathers had done. For they also built them high
places, and images, and Asherim, on every high hill, and
under every green tree. And there were also sodomites
in the land : and they did according to all the abomina-
tions of the nations which the Lord cast out before the
children of Israel.
And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Reho-
boam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against
Jerusalem : and he took away the treasures of the house
of the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house; he
even took away all : and he took away all the shields of
gold which Solomon had made. And king Rehoboam
made in their stead brasen shields, and committed them
unto the hands of the chief of the guard, which kept the
door of the king's house. And it was so when the king
went into the house of the Lord, that the guard bare
them, and brought them back into the guard chamber.
Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he
did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles
of the kings of Judah? And there was war between
Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days. And Reho-
boam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his
fathers in the city of David. And his mother's name
154 I- KINGS [XV. 1-17
was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Abijam his son
reigned in his stead.
Now in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam the son
of Nebat reigned Abijam over Judah. Three years
reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was
Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom. And he wallced
in all the sins of his father, which he had done before
him : and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his
God, as the heart of David his father. Nevertheless for
David's sake did the Lord his God give him a lamp in
Jerusalem, to set up his son after him, and to establish
Jerusalem : because David did that which was right in
the eyes of the Lord, and turned not aside from any
thing that He commanded him all the days of his life,
save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. And there
was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days
of his life.
Now the rest of the acts of Abijam, and all that he did,
are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam
and Jeroboam. And Abijam slept with his fathers ; and
they buried him in the city of David : and Asa his son
reigned in his stead.
And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel
reigned Asa over Judah. And forty and one years
reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was
Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom. And Asa did
that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, as did
David his father. And he took away the sodomites out
of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers
had made. And also Maachah his mother, even her
he removed from being queen, because she had made an
abominable image for an Asherah ; and Asa destroyed
her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron. But the
high places were not removed : nevertheless Asa's heart
was perfect with the Lord all his days. And he brought
in the things which his father had dedicated, and the
things which himself had dedicated, into the house of
the Lord, silver, and gold, and vessels.
And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of
Israel all their days. And Baasha king of Israel went
up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might not
XV. 1 8-29] L KINGS 155
suffer any to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah.
Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left
in the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the trea-
sures of the king's house, and delivered them into the
hand of his servants : and king Asa sent them to Ben-
hadad, the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of
Syria, that dwelt at Damascus, saying: — "There is a
league between me and thee, and between my father and
thy father : behold, I have sent unto thee a present of
silver and gold ; come and break thy league with Baasha
king of Israel, that he may depart from me." So Ben-
hadad hearkened unto king Asa, and sent the captains of
the hosts which he had against the cities of Israel, and
smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-beth-maachah, and all
Cinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali. And it came
to pass, when Baasha heard thereof, that he left off
building of Ramah, and dwelt in Tirzah. Then king
Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah ; none
was exempted : and they took away the stones of
Ramah, and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasha had
builded ; and king Asa built with them Geba of Ben-
jamin, and Mizpah.
The rest of all the acts of Asa, and all his might, and
all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they
not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of
Judah? Nevertheless in the time of his old age he was
diseased in his feet. And Asa slept with his fathers,
and was buried with his fathers in the city of David
his father : and Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his
stead.
And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over
Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and
reigned over Israel two years. And he did evil in the
sight of the Lord, and walked in the way of his father,
and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin. And
Baasha the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar,
conspired against him ; and Baasha smote him at Gib-
bethon, which belonged to the Philistines ; for Nadab
and all Israel laid siege to Gibbethon. Even in the
third year of Asa king of Judah did Baasha slay him,
and reigned in his stead. And it came to pass, when
he reigned, that he smote all the house of Jeroboam;
156 I. KINGS [xv. 30— xvi. 9
he left not to Jeroboam any that breathed, until he had
destroyed him, according- unto the saying of the Lord,
which He spake by His servant Ahijah the Shilonite :
because of the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned, and
which he made Israel sin, by his provocation wherewith
he provoked the Lord God of Israel to anger.
Now the rest of the acts of Nadab, and all that he
did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles
of the kings of Israel? And there was war between
Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. In the
third year of Asa king of Judah began Baasha the son
of Ahijah to reign over all Israel in Tirzah, twenty and
four years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord,
and walked in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin
wherewith he made Israel to sin.
Then the word of the Lord came to Jehu the son of
Hanani against Baasha, saying: — "Forasmuch as I
exalted thee out of the dust, and made thee prince over
My people Israel ; and thou hast walked in the way
of Jeroboam, and hast made My people Israel to sin,
to provoke Me to anger with their sins ; behold, I will
take away the posterity of Baasha, and the posterity of
his house; and will make thy house like the house of
Jeroboam the son of Nebat. Him that dieth of Baasha
in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth of
his in the fields shall the fowls of the air eat." Now
the rest of the acts of Baasha, and what he did, and
his might, are they not written in the book of the
chronicles of the kings of Israel? So Baasha slept
vvith his fathers, and was buried in Tirzah : and Elah
his son reigned in his stead. And also by the hand of
the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani came the word of
the Lord against Baasha, and against his house, even
for all the evil that he did in the sight of the Lord, in
provoking Him to anger with the work of his hands,
in being like the house of Jeroboam; and because he
killed him.
In the twenty and sixth year of Asa king of Judah
began Elah the son of Baasha to reign over Israel in
Tirzah, two years. And his servant Zimri, captain of
half his chariots, conspired against him, as he was in
Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza,
xvi. 10-24] I- KINGS 157
steward of his house in Tirzah. And Zimri went in
and smote him, and killed him, in the twenty and
seventh year of Asa king- of Judah, and reigned in his
stead. And it came to pass, when he began to reign,
as soon as he sat on his throne, that he slew all the
house of Baasha : he left him not a single man child,
neither of his kinsfolks, nor of his friends. Thus did
Zimri destroy all the house of Baasha, according to the
word of the Lord, which He spake against Baasha by
Jehu the prophet, for all the sins of Baasha, and the
sins of Elah his son, by which they sinned, and by
which they made Israel to sin, in provoking the Lord
God of Israel to anger with their vanities. Now the
rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did, are they
not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings
of Israel?
In the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah
did Zimri reign seven days in Tirzah. And the people
were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to
the Philistines. And the people that were encamped
heard say: — "Zimri hath conspired, and hath also
slain the king:" wherefore all Israel made Omri, the
captain of the host, king over Israel that day in the
camp. And Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all
Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah. And it
came to pass, when Zimri saw that the city was taken,
that he went into the palace of the king's house, and
burnt the king's house over him with fire, and died, for
his sins which he sinned in doing evil in the sight of the
Lord, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in this
sin which he did, to make Israel to sin. Now the rest
of the acts of Zimri, and his treason that he wrought,
are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Israel?
Then were the people of Israel divided into two
parts : half of the people followed Tibni the son of
Ginath, to make him king; and half followed Omri.
But the people that followed Omri prevailed against the
people that followed Tibni the son of Ginath : so Tibni
died, and Omri reigned. In the thirty and first year
of Asa king of Judah began Omri to reign over Israel,
twelve years : six years reigned he in Tirzah. And he
158 I. KINGS [xvi. 25— xvli. 5
bought the hill Samaria of Shemer for two talents of
silver, and built on the hill, and called the name of the
city which he built, after the name of Shemer, owner
of the hill, Samaria. But Omri wrought evil in the
eyes of the Lord, and did worse than all that were be-
fore him. For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam
the son of Nebat, and in his sin wherewith he made
Israel to sin, to provoke the Lord God of Israel to
anger with their vanities. Now the rest of the acts
of Omri which he did, and his might that he shewed,
are they not written in the book of the chronicles- of the
kings of Israel? So Omri slept with his fathers, and
was buried in Samaria : and Ahab his son reigned in
his stead.
And in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of Judah
began Ahab the son of Omri to reign over Israel : and
Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria
twenty and two years. And Ahab the son of Omri
did evil in the sight of the Lord above all that were
before him. And it came to pass, as if it had been a
light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the
son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter
of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served
Baal, and worshipped him. And he reared up an altar
for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in
Samaria. And Ahab made the Asherah ; and Ahab
did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger
than all the kings of Israel that were before him.
In his days did Hiel the Beth-elite build Jericho : he
laid the foundation thereof in Abiram his firstborn, and
set up the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, ac-
cording to the word of the Lord, which He spake by
Joshua the son of Nun.
And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of Tishbeh of Gilead,
said unto Ahab: — " As the Lord God of Israel liveth,
before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain
these years, but according to my word." And the
word of the Lord came unto him, saying : — " Get thee
hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the
brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And it shall be,
that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have com-
manded the ravens to feed thee there." So he went
xvii. 6-19] I. KINGS 159
and did according- unto the word of the Lord : for he
went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before
Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh
in the morning-, and bread and flesh in the evening- ;
and he drank of the brook. And it came to pass after
a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been
no rain in the land.
And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying : —
" Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to
Zidon, and dwell there : behold, I have commanded a
widow woman there to sustain thee."
So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he
came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman
was there gathering of sticks : and he called to her,
and said : — " Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in
a vessel, that I may drink." And as she was going
to fetch it, he called to her, and said : — " Bring me, I
pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand." And she
said : — " As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake,
but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a
cruse : and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I
may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may
eat it, and die. " And Elijah said unto her : — " Fear not ;
go and do as thou hast said : but make me thereof a
little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make
for thee and for thy son. For thus saith the Lord God
of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither
shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord
sendeth rain upon the earth." And she went and did
according to the saying of Elijah : and she, and he, and
her house, did eat many days. And the barrel of meal
wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according
to the word of the Lord, which He spake by Elijah.
And it came to pass after these things, that the son
of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and
his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left
in him. And she said unto Elijah : — " What have I to
do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto
me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?"
And he said unto her: — " Give me thy son." And he
took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a
loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
i6o I. KINGS [xvii. 20 — xviii. 11
And he cried unto the Lord, and said: — " O Lord my
God, hast Thou also brought evil upon the widow with
whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?" And he
stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried
unto the Lord, and said : — " O Lord my God, I pray
Thee, let this child's soul come into him again." And
the Lord heard the voice of Elijah ; and the soul of the
child came into him again, and he revived. And Elijah
took the child, and brought him down out of the cham-
ber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother :
and Elijah said: — "See, thy son liveth. " And the
woman said to Elijah : — " Now by this I know that
thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord
in thy mouth is truth."
And it came to pass after many days, that the word
of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying : —
' ' Go, shew thyself unto Ahab ; and I will send rain
upon the earth." And Elijah went to shew himself
unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
And Ahab called Obadiah, which was the governor of
his house. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly :
for it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the
Lord, that Obadiah took an hundred prophets, and hid
them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and
water.) And Ahab said unto Obadiah : — " Go into the
land, unto all fountains of water, and unto all brooks :
peradventure we may find grass to save the horses and
mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts." So they
divided the land between them to pass throughout it :
Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went
another way by himself.
And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met
him : and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said :
— " Is it thou, my lord Elijah?" And he answered
him : — ** It is I : go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is
here." And he said: — "What have I sinned, that
thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab,
to slay me? As the Lord thy God liveth, there is no
nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to
seek thee: and when they said, He is not there; he
took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found
thee not. And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord,
xviii. 12-25] I- KINGS 161
Behold, Elijah is here. And it shall come to pass, as
soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of the
Lord shall carry thee whither I know not ; and so when
I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall
slay me : but I thy servant fear the Lord from my
youth. Was it not told my lord what I did when Jeze-
bel slew the prophets of the Lord, how I hid an hundred
men of the Lord's prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed
them with bread and water? And now thou sayest.
Go, tell thy lord. Behold, Elijah is here; and he shall
slay me." And Elijah said: — "As the Lord of hosts
liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself
unto him to-day." So Obadiah went to meet Ahab,
and told him : and Ahab went to meet Elijah.
And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that
Ahab said unto him: — "Art thou he that troubleth
Israel?" And he answered: — "I have not troubled
Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye
have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and
thou hast followed the Baalim. Now therefore send, and
gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the
prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the pro-
phets of the Asherah four hundred^ which eat at Jeze-
bel's table." So Ahab sent unto all the children of
Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount
Carmel. And Elijah came unto all the people, and
said : — •" How long halt ye between two opinions? if
the Lord be God, follow Him : but if Baal, then follow
him." And the people answered him not a word.
Then said Elijah unto the people : — " I, even I only, re-
main a prophet of the Lord ; but Baal's prophets are four
hundred and fifty men. Let them therefore give us
two bullocks ; and let them choose one bullock for
themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and
put no fire under : and I will dress the other bullock,
and lay it on wood, and put no fire under : and call ye
on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name
of the Lord : and the God that answereth by fire, let
him be God." And all the people answered and said :
— " It is well spoken." And Elijah said unto the pro-
phets of Baal : — " Choose you one bullock for yourselves,
and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the
VOL. II. G
1 62 I. KINGS [xviii. 26-38
name of your gods, but put no fire under." And they
took the bullock which was given them, and they
dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morn-
ing even until noon, saying: — "O Baal, hear us."
But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And
they leaped upon the altar which was made. And it
came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and
said: — "Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is
talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or per-
adventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked." And
they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner
with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon
them.
And it came to pass, when midday was past, and
they prophesied until the time of the offering of the
evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any
to answer, nor any that regarded. And Elijah said
unto all the people: — "Come near unto me." And
all the people came near unto him. And he repaired
the altar of the Lord that was broken down. And
Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of
the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of
the Lord came, saying, Israel shall be thy name : and
with the stones he built an altar in the name of the
Lord : and he made a trench about the altar, as great
as would contain two measures of seed. And he put
the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and
laid it on the wood, and said : — " Fill four barrels
with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on
the wood." And he said : — " Do it the second time."
And they did it the second time. And he said : — " Do it
the third time." And they did it the third time. And
the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the
trench also with water. And it came to pass at the
time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah
the prophet came near, and said: — "Lord God of
Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day
that Thou art God in Israel, and that I am Thy servant,
and that I have done all these things at Thy word.
Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know
that Thou art the Lord God, and that Thou hast turned
their heart back again." Then the fire of the Lord
xviii. 39— xix. 5] I. KINGS 163
fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood,
and the stones, and the dust, and Hcked up the water
that was in the trench. And when all the people saw
it, they fell on their faces : and they said : — " The
Lord, He is the God; the Lord, He is the God." And
Elijah said unto them : — " Take the prophets of Baal;
let not one of them escape. ' ' And they took them :
and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon,
and slew them there.
And Elijah said unto Ahab : — " Get thee up, eat and
drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain." So
Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went
up to the top of Carmel ; and he cast himself down upon
the earth, and put his face between his knees, and
said to his servant: — "Go up now, look toward the
sea." And he went up, and looked, and said:- —
"There is nothing-." And he said: — "Go again
seven times. " And it came to pass at the seventh time,
that he said : — " Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out
of the sea, like a man's hand." And he said : — " Go
up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee
down, that the rain stop thee not." And it came to
pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with
clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And
Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel. And the hand of the
Lord was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and
ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and
withal how he had slain all the prophets with the
sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah,
saying : — " So let the gods do to me, and more also, if
I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to-
morrow about this time." And when he saw that, he
arose, and went for his life, and came to Beer-sheba,
which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.
But he himself went a day's journey into the wilder-
ness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree : and
he requested for himself that he might die ; and said :
— " It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life;
for I am not better than my fathers." And as he lay
and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel
touched him, and said unto him: — "Arise and eat."
1 64 I. KINGS [xix, 6-17
And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken
on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And
he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. And
the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and
touched him, and said : — " Arise and eat; because the
journey is too great for thee." And he arose, and did
eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat
forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of
God.
And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there ;
and, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and
He said unto him : — " What doest thou here, Elijah?"
And he said : — " I have been very jealous for the Lord
God of hosts : for the children of Israel have forsaken
Thy covenant, thrown down Thine altars, and slain Thy
prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left;
and they seek my life, to take it away." And He said :
— " Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the
Lord." And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great
and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces
the rocks before the Lord ; but the Lord was not in the
wind : and after the wind an earthquake ; but the Lord
was not in the earthquake : and after the earthquake a
fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the
fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah
heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and
went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave.
And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said : —
" What doest thou here, Elijah?" And he said : — " I
have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts : be-
cause the children of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant,
thrown down Thine altars, and slain Thy prophets with
the sword ; and I, even I only, am left ; and they seek my
life, to take it away." And the Lord said unto him:
— " Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damas-
cus : and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king
over Syria : and Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou
anoint to be king over Israel : and Elisha the son of
Shaphat of Abel-meholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet
in thy room. And it shall come to pass, that him that
escapeth the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay : and him
that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay.
xix. 1 8— XX. 9] I. KINGS 165
Yet I have left Me seven thousand in Israel, all the
knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every
mouth which hath not kissed him."
So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of
Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen
before him, and he with the twelfth : and Elijah passed
by him, and cast his mantle upon him. And he left
the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said: — "Let me,
I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I
will follow thee." And he said unto him : — " Go back
ag-ain : for what have I done to thee?" And he returned
back from him, and took a yoke of oxen, and slew
them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the
oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat.
Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered
unto him.
And Ben-hadad the king of Syria gathered all his
host together : and there were thirty and two kings
with him, and horses, and chariots : and he went up
and besieged Samaria, and warred against it. And he
sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city,
and said unto him : — " Thus saith Ben-hadad, thy silver
and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children,
even the goodliest, are mine." And the king of Israel
answered and said : — " My lord, O king, according to
thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have." And the
messengers came again, and said :—" Thus speaketh
Ben-hadad, saying. Although I have sent unto thee,
saying. Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold,
and thy wives, and thy children ; yet I will send my
servants unto thee to-morrow about this time, and they
shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants';
and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine
eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away."
Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land,
and said :— " Mark, I pray you, and see how this man
seeketh mischief : for he sent unto me for my wives,
and for my children, and for my silver, and for my
gold; and I denied him not." And all the elders and
all the people said unto him : — " Hearken not unto
him, nor consent." Wherefore he said unto the mes-
sengers of Ben-hadad: — "Tell my lord the king, All
1 66 I. KINGS [XX. 10-22
that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I
will do: but this thing- I may not do." And the mes-
sengers departed, and brought him word again. And
Ben-hadad sent unto him, and said : — " The gods do so
unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall
suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me."
And the king of Israel answered and said: — "Tell
him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast
himself as he that putteth it off. " And it came to pass,
when Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drink-
ing, he and the kings in the pavilions, that he said unto
his servants: — "Set yourselves in array." And they
set themselves in array against the city.
And, behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab king of
Israel, saying : — " Thus saith the Lord, Hast thou seen
all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it into
thine hand this day ; and thou shalt know that I am the
Lord." And Ahab said: — "By whom?" And he
said: — "Thus saith the Lord, Even by the young
men of the princes of the provinces." Then he said : —
"Who shall order the battle?" And he answered: —
"Thou." Then he numbered the young men of the
princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred
and thirty two : and after them he numbered all the
people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thou-
sand. And they went out at noon. But Ben-hadad
was drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the
kings, the thirty and two kings that helped him. And
the young men of the princes of the provinces went out
first; and Ben-hadad sent out, and they told him, say-
ing : — " There are men come out of Samaria." And he
said: — "Whether they be come out for peace, take
them alive ; or whether they be come out for war, take
them alive." So these young men of the princes of the
provinces came out of the city, and the army which
followed them. And they slew every one his man :
and the Syrians fled ; and Israel pursued them : and
Ben-hadad the king of Syria escaped on an horse with
the horsemen. And the king of Israel went out, and
smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians
with a great slaughter.
And the prophet came out to the king of Israel, and
XX. 23-32] I. KINGS 167
said unto him :— " Go, streng-then thyself, and mark,
and see what thou doest : for at the return of the year
the king- of Syria will come up against thee." And
the servants of the king- of Syria said unto him : —
" Their gods are gods of the hills ; therefore they were
stronger than we ; but let us fight against them in the
plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. And
do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of
his place, and put captains in their rooms : and number
thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse
for horse, and chariot for chariot : and we will fight
against them in the plain, and surely we shall be
stronger than they." And he hearkened unto their
voice, and did so. And it came to pass at the return
of the year, that Ben-hadad numbered the Syrians, and
went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel. And the
children of Israel were numbered, and were all present,
and went against them : and the children of Israel
pitched before them like two little flocks of kids ; but
the Syrians filled the country.
And there came a man of God, and spake unto the
king of Israel, and said: — "Thus saith the Lord, Be-
cause the Syrians have said, The Lord is God of the
hills, but He is not God of the valleys, therefore will
I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and
ye shall know that I am the Lord." And they pitched
one over against the other seven days. And so it was,
that in the seventh day the battle was joined : and the
children of Israel slew of the Syrians an hundred thou-
sand footmen in one day. But the rest fled to Aphek,
into the city ; and there a wall fell upon twenty and
seven thousand of the men that were left.
And Ben-hadad fled, and came into the city, into an
inner chamber. And his servants said unto him : —
" Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the
house of Israel are merciful kingfs : let us, I pray thee,
put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads,
and go out to the king of Israel : peradventure he will
save thy life." So they girded sackcloth on their loins,
and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of
Israel, and said: — "Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I
pray thee, let me live." And he said :— " Is he yet
1 68 I. KINGS [xx. 33— xxi. i
alive? he is my brother." Now the men did diligently
observe and hasted to catch whether it were his
mind: and they said: — "Thy brother Ben-hadad?"
Then he said : — " Go ye, bring- him. " Then Ben-hadad
came forth to him ; and he caused him to come up into
the chariot. And Ben-hadad said unto him : — " The
cities, which my father took from thy father, I will
restore; and thou shalt make streets for thee in
Damascus, as my father made in Samaria." Then
said Ahab : — " I will send thee away with this cove-
nant." So he made a covenant with him, and sent
him away.
And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said
unto his neighbour by the word of the Lord : — " Smite
me, I pray thee." And the man refused to smite him.
Then said he unto him: — "Because thou hast not
obeyed the voice of the Lord, behold, as soon as thou
art departed from me, a lion shall slay thee." And as
soon as he was departed from him, a lion found him,
and slew him. Then he found another man, and said : —
" Smite me, I pray thee." And the man smote him,
so that in smiting he wounded him. So the prophet
departed, and waited for the king by the way, and
disguised himself with ashes upon his face. And as
the king passed by, he cried unto the king : and he
said : — " Thy servant went out into the midst of the
battle; and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a
man unto me, and said. Keep this man : if by any
means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life,
or else thou shalt pay a talent of silver. And as thy
servant was busy here and there, he was gone." And
the king of Israel said unto him :■ — " So shall thy judg-
ment be; thyself hast decided it." And he hasted,
and took the ashes away from his face ; and the king of
Israel discerned him that he was of the prophets. And
he said unto him : — " Thus saith the Lord, Because
thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed
to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his
life, and thy people for his people." And the king of
Israel went to his house heavy and displeased, and
came to Samaria.
And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth
xxi. 2-13] I. KINGS 169
the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard
by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. And Ahab
spake unto Naboth, saying: — " Give me thy vineyard,
that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is
near unto my house : and I will give thee for it a better
vineyard than it ; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give
thee the worth of it in money." And Naboth said to
Ahab : — " The Lord forbid it me, that I should give the
inheritance of my fathers unto thee." And Ahab came
into his house heavy and displeased because of the word
which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him : for he
had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my
fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned
away his face, and would eat no bread. But Jezebel
his wife came to him, and said unto him : — " Why is thy
spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread?" And he said
unto her : — " Because I spake unto Naboth the Jezreel-
ite, and said unto him. Give me thy vineyard for money ;
or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard
for it : and he answered, I will not give thee my vine-
yard." And Jezebel his wife said unto him: — "Dost
thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat
bread, and let thine heart be merry : I will give thee the
vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite."
So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them
with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to
the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth.
And she wrote in the letters, saying: — "Proclaim a
fast, and set Naboth on high among the people : and
set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear
witness against him, saying. Thou didst blaspheme
God and the king. And then carry him out, and
stone him, that he may die." And the men of
his city, even the elders and the nobles who were the in-
habitants in his city, did as Jezebel had sent unto them,
and as it was written in the letters which she had sent
unto them. They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth on
high among the people. And there came in two men,
children of Belial, and sat before him : and the men of
Belial witnessed against him, even against Naboth, in
the presence of the people, saying : — " Naboth did blas-
pheme God and the king. " Then they carried him forth
G 3
170 I. KINGS [xxi. 14-28
out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died.
Then they sent to Jezebel, saying : — " Naboth is stoned,
and is dead." And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard
that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said
to Ahab : — " Arise, take possession of the vineyard of
Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for
money: for Naboth is not alive, but dead." And it
came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead,
that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth
the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.
And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite,
saying: — "Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of
Israel, which is in Samaria : behold, he is in the vine-
yard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it.
And thou shalt speak unto him, saying. Thus saith the
Lord, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession?
And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the
Lord, In the place where dogs licked the blood of
Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine." And
Ahab said to Elijah : — " Hast thou found me, O mine
enemy?" And he answered: — "I have found thee:
because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight
of the Lord. Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and
will take away thy posterity, and will cut off from
Ahab every man child, and him that is shut up and
him that is left in Israel, and will make thine house like
the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the
house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the provocation
wherewith thou hast provoked Me to anger, and made
Israel to sin." And of Jezebel also spake the Lord,
saying: — "The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of
Jezreel. Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs
shall eat ; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls
of the air eat." But there was none like unto Ahab,
which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight
of the Lord, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up. And he
did very abominably in following idols, according to all
things as did the Amorites, whom the Lord cast out
before the children of Israel. And it came to pass,
when Ahab heard those v/ords, that he rent his clothes,
and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay
in sackcloth, and went softly. And the word of the
xxi. 29 — xxii. 13] I. KINGS 171
Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying: — " Seest
thou how Ahab humbleth himself before Me? because
he humbleth himself before Me, I will not bring- the
evil in his days : but in his son's days will I bring the
evil upon his house."
And they continued three years without war between
Syria and Israel, And it came to pass in the third
year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to
the king of Israel. And the king of Israel said unto
his servants : — " Know ye that Ramoth in Gilead is
ours, and we be still, and take it not out of the hand
of the king of Syria?" And he said unto Jehosha-
phat:— " Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramoth-
gilead?" And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel : —
" I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses
as thy horses. " And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of
Israel: — "Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the
Lord to-day." Then the king of Israel gathered the
prophets together, about four hundred men, and said
unto them: — "Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to
battle, or shall I forbear?" And they said : — " Go up;
for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king."
And Jehoshaphat said : — " Is there not here a prophet of
the Lord besides, that we might enquire of him?" And
the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat: — "There is
yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we
may enquire of the Lord : 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 officer, and said : — " Hasten
hither Micaiah the son of Imlah."
And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of
Judah sat each on his throne, having put on their robes,
in a void place in the entrance of the gate of Samaria ;
and all the prophets prophesied before them. And
Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of
iron : and he said : — " Thus saith the Lord, With these
shalt thou push the Syrians, until thou have consumed
them." And all the prophets prophesied so, saying : —
" Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper: for the Lord
shall deliver it into the king's hand." And the mes-
senger that was gone to call Micaiah spake unto him,
172 I. KINGS [xxii. 14-27
saying : — " Behold now, the words of the prophets de-
clare good unto the king with one mouth : let thy word,
I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak
that which is good." And Micaiah said: — "As the
Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I
speak," So he came to the king. And the king said
unto him : — " Micaiah, shall we go against Ramoth-
gilead to battle, or shall we forbear?" And he an-
swered him: — "Go, and prosper: for the Lord shall
deliver it into the hand of the king." And the king
said unto him :— " How many times shall I adjure thee
that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the
name of the Lord?" And he said : — " I saw all Israel
scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shep-
herd : and the Lord said. These have no master : let
them return every man to his house in peace." And
the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat : — " Did I not
tell thee that he would prophesy not good concerning
me, but evil?" And he said: — " Hear thou therefore
the word of the Lord : I saw the Lord sitting on His
throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on
His right hand and on His left. And the Lord said,
Who shall persuade 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 a
spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will per-
suade him. And the Lord said unto him. Wherewith?
And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit
in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said. Thou
shalt persuade him, and prevail also : go forth, and do
so. Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying
spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the
Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee."
But Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near, and
smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said : — " Which way
went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak unto
thee?" And Micaiah said : — " Behold, thou shalt see
in that day, when thou shalt go into an inner chamber
to hide thyself." And the king of Israel said: —
" Take Micaiah, and carry him back unto Amon the
governor of the city, and to Joash the king's son; and
say, Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the prison,
xxii. 28-41] I. KINGS 173
and feed him with bread of affliction and with water
of affliction, until I come in peace." And Micaiah
said : — " If thou return at all in peace, the Lord hath
not spoken by me." And he said: — "Hearken, O
people, every one of you."
So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of
Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead. And the king of
Israel said unto Jehoshaphat : — " I will disguise myself
and enter into the battle; but put thou on thy robes."
And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into
the battle. But the king of Syria commanded his
thirty and two captains that had rule over his chariots,
saying: — "Fight neither with small nor great, save
only with the king of Israel." And it came to pass,
when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that
they said: — "Surely it is the king of Israel." And
they turned aside to fight against him : and Jehoshaphat
cried out. And it came to pass, when the captains of
the chariots perceived that it was not the king of Israel,
that they turned back from pursuing him. And a cer-
tain man drew a bow at a venture, and smote the king
of Israel between the joints of the harness : wherefore
he said unto the driver of his chariot: — "Turn thine
hand, and carry me out of the host ; for I am wounded. "
And the battle increased that day : and the king was
stayed up in his chariot against the Syrians, and died
at even : and the blood ran out of the wound into the
midst of the chariot. And there went a proclamation
throughout the host about the going down of the sun,
saying : — " Every man to his city, and every man to
his own country." So the king died, and was brought
to Samaria ; and they buried the king in Samaria. And
one washed the chariot in the pool of Samaria ; and the
dogs licked up his blood ; and they washed his armour ;
according unto the word of the Lord which He spake.
Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did,
and the ivory house which he made, and all the cities
that he built, are they not written in the book of the
chronicles of the kings of Israel? So Ahab slept with
his fathers ; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead.
And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over
Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. Jeho-
174 I. KINGS [xxii. 42-53
shaphat was thirty and five years old when he began to
reign ; and he reigned twenty and five years in Jeru-
salem. And his mother's name was Azubah the
daughter of Shilhi. And he walked in all the ways of
Asa his father ; he turned not aside from it, doing that
which was right in the eyes of the Lord : nevertheless
the high places were not taken away ; for the people
offered and burnt incense yet in the high places. And
Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel. Now
the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, and his might that
he shewed, and how he warred, are they not written in
the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And
the remnant of the sodomites, which remained in the
days of his father Asa, he took out of the land.
There was then no king in Edom : a deputy was king.
Jehoshaphat made Tarshish ships to go to Ophir for
gold : but they went not ; for the ships were broken at
Ezion-geber. Then said Ahaziah the son of Ahab unto
Jehoshaphat : — " Let my servants go with thy serv-
ants in the ships." But Jehoshaphat would not. And
Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with
his fathers in the city of David his father : and Jehoram
his son reigned in his stead.
Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel
in Samaria the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king
of Judah, and reigned two years over Israel. And he
did evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the way
of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the
way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel
to sin : for he served Baal, and worshipped him, and
provoked to anger the Lord God of Israel, according to
all that his father had done.
THE SECOND BOOK OF THE KINGS
Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of
Ahab.
And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper
chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick : and he
sent messengers, and said unto them: — "Go, enquire
of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover
of this disease." But the angel of the Lord said to
Elijah the Tishbite : — " Arise, go up to meet the mes-
sengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them. Is
it because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to
enquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron? Now there-
fore thus saith the Lord, Thou shalt not come down
from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt
surely die." And Elijah departed.
And when the messengers turned back unto him, he
said unto them: — "Why are ye now turned back?"
And they said unto him : — " There came a man up to
meet us, and said unto us, Go, turn again unto the
king that sent you, and say unto him. Thus saith the
Lord, Is it because there is not a God in Israel, that
thou sendest to enquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron?
therefore thou shalt not come down from that bed on
which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die." And
he said unto them : — " What manner of man was he
which came up to meet you, and told you these words?"
And they answered him : — " He was an hairy man, and
girt with a girdle of leather about his loins." And he
said : — " It is Elijah the Tishbite."
Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with
his fifty. And he went up to him : and, behold, he
sat on the top of an hill. And he spake unto him : —
" Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down."
And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty : —
" If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from
heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty." And there
came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his
175
176 IL KINGS [i. II— ii. 4
fifty. Again also he sent unto him another captain of
fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto
him : — " O man of God, thus hath the king- said, Come
down quickly." And Elijah answered and said unto
them : — " If I be a man of God, let fire come down from
heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty." And the fire
of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and
his fifty. And he sent again a captain of the third fifty
with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up,
and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and be-
sought him, and said unto him : — " O man of God, I
pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy
servants, be precious in thy sight. Behold, there came
fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of
the former fifties with their fifties : therefore let my life
now be precious in thy sight." And the angel of the
Lord said unto Elijah : — " Go down with him : be not
afraid of him." And he arose, and went down with
him unto the king. And he said unto him : — " Thus
saith the Lord, Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers
to enquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron, is it because
there is no God in Israel to enquire of His word? there-
fore thou shalt not come down off that bed on which
thou art gone up, but shalt surely die."
So he died according to the word of the Lord which
Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram reigned in his stead
in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat
king of Judah ; because he had no son. Now the rest
of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written
in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
And it came to pass, when the Lord would take up
Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with
Elisha from Gilgal. And Elijah said unto Ellsha :■ — ■
" Tarry here, I pray thee ; for the Lord hath sent me to
Beth-el." And Elisha said unto him : — " As the Lord
liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. " So
they went down to Beth-el. And the sons of the pro-
phets that were at Beth-el came forth to Elisha, and said
unto him : — " Knowest thou that the Lord will take
away thy master from thy head to-day?" And he said :
— " Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace." And Elijah
said unto him : — " Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for
ii. 5-16] 11. KINGS 177
the Lord hath sent me to Jericho." And he said: —
" As the Lord Hveth, and as thy soul Hveth, I will not
leave thee. " So they came to Jericho. And the sons
of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and
said unto him : — " Knowest thou that the Lord will take
away thy master from thy head to-day?" And he
answered: — "Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace."
And Elijah said unto him : — ■" Tarry, I pray thee, here;
for the Lord hath sent me to Jordan." And he said : —
" As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not
leave thee." And they two went on. And fifty men
of the sons ot the prophets went, and stood to view afar
off : and they two stood by Jordan. And Elijah took
his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the
waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so
that they two went over on dry ground.
And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that
Elijah said unto Elisha : — " Ask what I shall do for thee,
before I be taken away from thee." And Elisha said : —
" I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon
me." And he said : — " Thou hast asked a hard thing :
nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee,
it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so."
And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked,
that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses
of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went
up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and
he cried : — " My father, my father, the chariot of Israel,
and the horsemen thereof." And he saw him no more :
and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in
two pieces. He took up also the mantle of Elijah that
fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank
of Jordan ; and he took the mantle of Elijah that fell
from him, and smote the waters, and said : — " Where
is the Lord God of Elijah?" and when he also had
smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither : and
Elisha went over.
And when the sons of the prophets which were to view
at Jericho saw him, they said: — "The spirit of Elijah
doth rest on Elisha." And they came to meet him, and
bowed themselves to the ground before him. And they
said unto him : — " Behold now, there be with thy serv-
178 II. KINGS [ii. 17— iii. 5
ants fifty strong men ; let them go, we pray thee, and
seek thy master : lest peradventure the Spirit of the
Lord hath taken him up, and cast him upon some moun-
tain, or into some valley." And he said : — " Ye shall
not send." And when they urged him till he was
ashamed, he said : — " Send." They sent therefore fifty
men; and they sought three days, but found him not.
And when they came again to him, (for he tarried at
Jericho,) he said unto them : — " Did I not say unto you.
Go not?"
And the men of the city said unto Elisha : — " Behold,
I pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my
lord seeth : but the water is naught, and the ground
barren." And he said : — " Bring me a new cruse, and
put salt therein." And they brought it to him. And
he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast
the salt in there, and said : — " Thus saith the Lord, I
have healed these waters ; there shall not be from thence
any more death or barren land. ' ' So the waters were
healed unto this day, according to the saying of Elisha
which he spake.
And he went up from thence unto Beth-el : and as
he was going up by the way, there came forth little
children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto
him: — "Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald
head." And he turned back, and looked on them, and
cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came
forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and
two children of them. And he went from thence to
mount Carmel, and from thence he returned to Samaria.
Now Jehoram the son of Ahab began to reign over
Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat
king of Judah, and reigned twelve years. And he
wrought evil in the sight of the Lord ; but not like his
father, and like his mother : for he put away the image
of Baal that his father had made. Nevertheless he
cleaved unto the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat,
which made Israel to sin ; he departed not therefrom.
And Mesha king of Moab was a sheepmaster, and
rendered unto the king of Israel an hundred thousand
lambs, and an hundred thousand rams, with the wool.
But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king
iii. 6-i8] 11. KINGS 179
of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. And king
Jehoram went out of Samaria the same time, and num-
bered all Israel. And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat
the king of Judah, saying : — " The king of Moab hath
rebelled against me : wilt thou go with me against
Moab to battle?" And he said: — " I will go up : I
am as thou art, my people as thy people, and my horses
as thy horses." And he said : — " Which way shall we
go up?" And he answered : — " The way through the
wilderness of Edom. " So the king of Israel went, and
the king of Judah, and the king of Edom : and they
fetched a compass of seven days' journey : and there
was no water for the host, and for the cattle that
followed them. And the king of Israel said : — " Alas !
that the Lord hath called these three kings together, to
deliver them into the hand of Moab!" But Jehosha-
phat said : — " Is there not here a prophet of the Lord,
that we may enquire of the Lord by him?" And one
of the king of Israel's servants answered and said : —
" Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured
water on the hands of Elijah." And Jehoshaphat said :
— " The word of the Lord is with him." So the king
of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went
down to him.
And Elisha said unto the king of Israel: — "What
have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy
father, and to the prophets of thy mother." And the
king of Israel said unto him: — "Nay: for the Lord
hath called these three kings together, to deliver them
into the hand of Moab." And Elisha said : — " As the
Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were
it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the
king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see
thee. But now bring me a minstrel." And it came to
pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the
Lord came upon him. And he said : — " Thus saith the
Lord, Make this valley full of ditches. For thus saith
the Lord, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see
rain ; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye
may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.
And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord :
He will deliver the Moabites also into your hand. And
i8o II. KINGS [iii. 19— iv. 3
ye shall smite every fenced city, and every choice city,
and shall fell every good tree, and stop all u^ells of
water, and mar every good piece of land with stones."
And it came to pass in the morning, when the meal
offering was offered, that, behold, there came water
by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with
water.
And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were
come up to fight against them, they gathered all that
were able to put on armour, and upward, and stood in
the border. And they rose up early in the morning, and
the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw
the water on the other side as red as blood : and they
said : — " This is blood : the kings are surely slain, and
they have smitten one another : now therefore, Moab,
to the spoil." And when they came to the camp of
Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so
that they fled before them : but they went forward into
the land, smiting the Moabites. And they beat down
the cities, and on every good piece of land cast every
man his stone, and filled it ; and they stopped all the
wells of water, and felled all the good trees : only in
Kir-haraseth left they the stones thereof ; howbeit the
slingers went about it, and smote it. And when the
king of Moab saw that the battle was too sore for him,
he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords,
to break through even unto the king of Edom : but they
could not. Then he took his eldest son that should have
reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt offering
upon the wall. And there was great indignation against
Israel : and they departed from him, and returned to
their own land.
Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the
sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying : — " Thy serv-
ant my husband is dead ; and thou knowest that thy
servant did fear the Lord : and the creditor is come to
take unto him my two sons to be bondmen." And
Elisha said unto her : — " What shall I do for thee? tell
me, what hast thou in the house?" And she said: —
" Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save
a pot of oil." Then he said: — "Go, borrow thee
vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels ;
iv. 4-19] 11. KINGS i8i
borrow not a few. And when thou art come in, thou
shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and
shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set
aside that which is full." So she went from him, and
shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought
the vessels to her; and she poured out. And it came
to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto
her son : — " Bring me yet a vessel." And he said unto
her:— "There is not a vessel more." And the oil
stayed. Then she came and told the man of God.
And he said : — " Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and
live thou and thy children of the rest."
And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem,
where was a great woman ; and she constrained him
to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed
by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said
unto her husband : — " Behold now, I perceive that this
is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.
Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall ;
and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a
stool, and a candlestick : and it shall be, when he cometh
to us, that he shall turn in thither." And it fell on a
day, that he came thither, and he turned into the
chamber, and lay there. And he said to Gehazi his
servant: — "Call this Shunammite. " And when he
had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto
him : — " Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been
careful for us with all this care ; what is to be done for
thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to
the captain of the host?" And she answered: — "I
dwell among mine own people. " And he said :■ — " What
then is to be done for her?" And Gehazi answered : —
" Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. " And
he said: — "Call her." And when he had called her,
she stood in the door. And he said : — " About this
season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace
a son." And she said : — " Nay, my lord, thou man of
God, do not lie unto thine handmaid. " And the woman
conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha
had said unto her, according to the time of life.
And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that
he went out to his father to the reapers. And he said
1 82 11. KINGS [iv. 20-34
unto his father : — " My head, my head." And he said
to a lad : — " Carry him to his mother." And when he
had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat
on her knees till noon, and then died. And she went
up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut
the door upon him, and went out. And she called unto
her husband, and said: — " Send me, I pray thee, one
of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run
to the man of God, and come again." And he said : —
" Wherefore wilt thou go to him to-day? it is neither
new moon nor sabbath." And she said: — "It shall
be well." Then she saddled an ass, and said to her
servant: — "Drive, and go forward; slack not thy
riding for me, except I bid thee."
So she went and came unto the man of God to mount
Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God
saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant : —
" Behold, yonder is that Shunammite : run now, I pray
thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with
thee? Is it well with thy husband? Is it well with the
child?" And she answered :— " It is well." And when
she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him
by the feet : but Gehazi came near to thrust her away.
And the man of God said : — " Let her alone; for her
soul is vexed within her : and the Lord hath hid it
from me, and hath not told me." Then she said: —
" Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not
deceive me?" Then he said to Gehazi: — "Gird up
thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy
way : if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any
salute thee, answer him not again : and lay my staff
upon the face of the child." And the mother of the
child said: — "As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul
liveth, I will not leave thee." And he arose, and
followed her. And Gehazi passed on before them, and
laid the staff upon the face of the child ; but there was
neither voice nor hearing. Wherefore he went again
to meet him, and told him, saying : — " The child is not
awaked." And when Elisha was come into the house,
behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. He
went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain,
and prayed unto the Lord. And he went up, and lay
iv. 35_v. 2] 11. KINGS 183
upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and
his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands :
and he stretched himself upon the child ; and the flesh
of the child waxed warm. Then he returned, and
walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and
stretched himself upon him : and the child sneezed
seven times, and the child opened his eyes. And he
called Gehazi, and said: — "Call this Shunammite."
So he called her. And when she was come in unto him,
he said : — " Take up thy son." Then she went in, and
fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and
took up her son, and went out.
And Elisha came ag"ain to Gilgal : and there was a
dearth in the land ; and the sons of the prophets were
sitting- before him : and he said unto his servant :• — ■
" Set on the g^reat pot, and seethe pottag-e for the sons
of the prophets." And one went out into the field to
gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered there-
of wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them
into the pot of pottage : for they knew them not. So
they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to
pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried
out, and said : — " O thou man of God, there is death
in the pot." And they could not eat thereof. But he
s:,'d : — "Then bring meal." And he cast it into the
pot; and he said: — "Pour out for the people, that
they may eat." And there was no harm in the pot.
And there came a man from Baal-shalisha, and
brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty
loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk there-
of. And he said : — " Give unto the people, that they
may eat." And his servitor said: — "What, should I
set this before an hundred men?" He said again: —
" Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith
the Lord, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof." So
he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof,
according to the word of the Lord.
Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of
Syria, was a great man with his master, and honour-
able, because by him the Lord had given deliverance
unto Syria : he was also a mighty man in valour, but he
was a leper. And the Syrians had gone out by com-
i84 11- KINGS [v. 3-14
panics, and had brought away captive out of the land
of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's
wife. And she said unto her mistress : — " Would God
my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria ! for
he would recover him of his leprosy." And one went
in, and told his lord, saying: — "Thus and thus said
the maid that is of the land of Israel." And the king
of Syria said :— " Go to, go, and I will send a letter
unto the king of Israel." And he departed, and took
with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces
of gold, and ten changes of raiment. And he brought
the letter to the king of Israel, saying: — " Now when
this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have therewith
sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest
recover him of his leprosy. " And it came to pass, when
the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his
clothes, and said: — "Am I God, to kill and to make
alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a
man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you,
and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me."
And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had
heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that
he sent to the king, saying: — "Wherefore hast thou
rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall
know that there is a prophet in Israel." So Naaman
came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at
the door of the house of Elisha. And Ehsha sent a
messenger unto him, saying: — "Go and wash in
Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to
thee, and thou shalt be clean." But Naaman was
wroth, and went away, and said : — " Behold, I thought,
he will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on
the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand over
the place, and recover the leper. Are not Abana and
Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters
of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean?"
So he turned and went away in a rage. And his serv-
ants came near, and spake unto him, and said : — " My
father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing,
wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then,
when he saith to thee, ^^'ash, and be clean?" Then
went he down, and dipped himself seven tirnes in Jordan,
V. 15-25] II. KINGS 185
according- to the saying- of the man of God : and his
flesh came again Hke unto the flesh of a little child, and
he was clean.
And he returned to the man of God, he and all his
company, and came, and stood before him : and he
said : — " Behold, now I know that there is no God in
all the earth, but in Israel : now therefore, I pray thee,
take a blessing of thy servant." But he said: — "As
the Lord liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive
none." And he urged him to take it; but he refused.
And Naaman said : — " Shall there not then, I pray thee,
be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth? for
thy servant will henceforth off^er neither burnt offering
nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the Lord. In
this thing the Lord pardon thy servant, that when my
master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship
there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I bow myself
in the house of Rimmon : when I bow down myself in
the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon thy servant in
this thing." And he said unto him : — " Go in peace."
So he departed from him a little way.
But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God,
said: — " Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this
Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he
brought : but, as the Lord liveth, I will run after him,
and take somewhat of him." So Gehazi followed after
Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after
him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, and
said: — "Is all well?" And he said: — "All is well.
My master hath sent me, saying. Behold, even now there
be come to me from the hill country of Ephraim two
young men of the sons of the prophets ; give them, I
pray thee, a talent of silver and two changes of gar-
ments." And Naaman said: — " Be content, take two
talents." And he urged him, and bound two talents of
silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and
laid them upon two of his servants ; and they bare them
before him. And when he came to the hill, he took them
from their hand, and bestowed them in the house : and
he let the men go, and they departed. But he went in, and
stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him : —
"Whence comest thou, Gehazi?" And he said: —
1 86 11. KINGS [v. 26— vi. 13
"Thy servant went no whither." And he said unto
him : — " Went not mine heart with thee, when the man
turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a
time to receive money, and to receive garments, and
oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and
menservants, and maidservants? The leprosy there-
fore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy
seed for ever." And he went out from his presence a
leper as white as snow.
And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha : —
" Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too
strait for us. Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan,
and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us
a place there, where we may dwell. " And he answered :
— "Go ye." And one said: — "Be content, I pray
thee, and go with thy servants." And he answered : —
" I will go." So he went with them. And when they
came to Jordan, they cut down wood. But as one was
felling a beam the axe head fell into the water : and
he cried, and said :^ — -"Alas, master! for it was
borrowed." And the man of God said : — " Where fell
it?" And he shewed him the place. And he cut down
a stick, and cast it in thither; and the iron did swim.
Therefore said he: — "Take it up to thee." And he
put out his hand, and took it.
Then the king of Syria warred against Israel, and
took counsel with his servants, saying : — " In such and
such a place shall be my camp." And the man of God
sent unto the king of Israel, saying: — " Beware that
thou pass not such a place ; for thither the Syrians are
come down." And the king of Israel sent to the place
which the man of God told him and warned him of, and
saved himself there, not once nor twice. Therefore the
heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this
thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them :
— " Will ye not shew me which of us is for the king
of Israel?" And one of his servants said : — " None,
my lord, O king : but Elisha, the prophet that is in
Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou
speakest in thy bedchamber." And he said: — "Go
and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him."
And it was told him, saying: — " Behold, he is in Do-
vi. 14-26] 11. KINGS 187
than." Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots,
and a great host : and they came by night, and com-
passed the city about.
And when the servant of the man of God was risen
early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the
city both with horses and chariots. And his servant
said unto him: — "Alas, my master! how shall we
do?" And he answered: — "Fear not: for they that
be with us are more than they that be with them. " And
Elisha prayed, and said :^ — ^" Lord, I pray Thee, open
his eyes, that he may see." And the Lord opened the
eyes of the young- man ; and he saw : and, behold, the
mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round
about Elisha. And when they came down to him, Elisha
prayed unto the Lord, and said:—" Smite this people,
I pray Thee, with blindness." And He smote them with
blindness according- to the word of Elisha. And Elisha
said unto them : — " This is not the way, neither is this
the city : follow me, and I will bring- you to the man
whom ye seek." But he led them to Samaria. And
it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria,
that Elisha said : — " Lord, open the eyes of these men,
that they may see." And the Lord opened their eyes,
and they saw ; and, behold, they were in the midst of
Samaria. And the king- of Israel said unto Elisha,
when he saw them : — " My father, shall I smite them?
shall I smite them?" And he answered: — "Thou
shalt not smite them : wouldest thou smite those whom
thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy
bow? set bread and water before them, that they may
eat and drink, and g-o to their master." And he pre-
pared g-reat provision for them : and when they had
eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to
their master. So the bands of Syria came no more into
the land of Israel.
And it came to pass after this, that Ben-hadad king-
of Syria g-athered all his host, and went up, and besieged
Samaria. And there was a great famine in Samaria :
and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was
sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part
of a cab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver. And
as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall.
1 88 11. KINGS [vi. 27— vii. 4
there cried a woman unto him, saying: — " Help, my
lord, O king-." And he said: — " If the Lord do not
help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barn-
floor, or out of the winepress?" And the king said unto
her: — "What aileth thee?" And she answered: —
" This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may
eat him to-day, and we will eat my son to-morrow. So
we boiled my son, and did eat him : and I said unto her
on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him :
and she hath hid her son." And it came to pass, when
the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent
his clothes ; and he passed by upon the wall, and the
people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within
upon his flesh. Then he said : — " God do so and more
also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat
shall stand on him this day." But Elisha sat in his
house, and the elders sat with him ; and the king sent
a man from before him : but ere the messenger came
to him, he said to the elders :— " See ye how this son
of a murderer hath sent to take away mine head? look,
when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold
him fast at the door : is not the sound of his master's
feet behind him?" And while he yet talked with them,
behold, the messenger came down unto him : and he
said : — " Behold, this evil is of the Lord; what should
I wait for the Lord any longer?" Then Elisha said : —
" Hear ye the word of the Lord; Thus saith the Lord,
To-morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour
be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a
shekel, in the gate of Samaria." Then a lord on whose
hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and
said : — " Behold, if the Lord would make windows in
heaven, might this thing be?" And he said : — " Be-
hold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not
eat thereof. "
And there were four leprous men at the entering in
of the gate : and they said one to another : — " Why sit
we here until we die? If we say. We will enter into the
city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die
there : and if we sit still here, we die also. Now there-
fore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians :
if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us.
vif. 5-15] II. KINGS 189
we shall but die." And they rose up in the twilight, to
go unto the camp of the Syrians : and when they were
come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria, behold,
there was no man there. For the Lord had made the
host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a
noise of horses, even the noise of a great host : and they
said one to another: — " Lo the king of Israel hath
hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings
of the Egyptians, to come upon us." Wherefore they
arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and
their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was,
and fled for their life. And when these lepers came to
the uttermost part of the camp, they went into one tent,
and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and
gold, and raiment, and went and hid it ; and came
again, and entered into another tent, and carried thence
also, and went and hid it. Then they said one to
another : — " We do not well : this day is a day of good
tidings, and we hold our peace : if we tarry till the
morning light, some mischief will come upon us : now
therefore come, that we may go and tell the king's
household." So they came and called unto the porter
of the city : and they told them, saying : — " We came
to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no
man there, neither voice of man, but horses tied, and
asses tied, and the tents as they were." And he called
the porters ; and they told it to the king's house within.
And the king arose in the night, and said unto his
servants : — " I will now shew you what the Syrians
have done to us. They know that we be hungry ; there-
fore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves
in the field, saying, When they come out of the city,
we shall catch them alive, and get into the city." And
one of his servants answered and said : — " Let us take
some of the horses that still remain — it will happen to
them as has happened to all the multitude that are
already dead — and let us send and see." They took
therefore two chariot horses ; and the king sent after
the host of the Syrians, saying : — " Go and see. " And
they went after them unto Jordan : and, lo, all the way
was full of garments and vessels, which the Syrians had
cast away in their haste. And the messengers returned,
igo II. KINGS [vii. i6— viii. 6
and told the king. And the people went out, and spoiled
the tents of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour
was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for
a shekel, according to the word of the Lord. And the
king appointed the lord on whose hand he leaned to
have the charge of the gate : and the people trode upon
him in the gate, and he died, as the man of God had
said, who spake when the king came down to him. And
it came to pass as the man of God had spoken to the
king, saying : — " Two measures of barley for a shekel,
and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, shall be to-
morrow about this time in the gate of Samaria:" and
that lord answered the man of God, and said : — " Now,
behold, if the Lord should make windows in heaven,
might such a thing be?" And he said : — " Behold, thou
shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof."
And so it fell out unto him : for the people trode upon
him in the gate, and he died.
Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he
had restored to life, saying : — " Arise, and go thou and
thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst
sojourn : for the Lord hath called for a famine ; and it
shall also come upon the land seven years." And the
woman arose, and did after the saying of the man of
God : and she went with her household, and sojourned
in the land of the Philistines seven years. And it came
to pass at the seven years' end, that the woman returned
out of the land of the Philistines : and she went forth
to cry unto the king for her house and for her land.
And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man
of God, saying : — " Tell me, I pray thee, all the great
things that Elisha hath done." And it came to pass,
as he was telling the king how he had restored a dead
body to life, that, behold, the woman, whose son he
had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and
for her land. And Gehazi said: — " My lord, O king,
this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha
restored to life. " And when the king asked the woman,
she told him. So the king appointed unto her a cer-
tain officer, saying: — " Restore all that was hers, and
all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the
land, even until now. "
viii. 7-20] II. KINGS 191
And Elisha came to Damascus ; and Ben-hadad the
king of Syria was sick; and it was told him, saying : —
" The man of God is come hither." And the king said
unto Hazael : — " Take a present in thine hand, and go,
meet the man of God, and enquire of the Lord by him,
saying. Shall I recover of this disease?" So Hazael
went to meet him, and took a present with him, even
of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels'
burden, and came and stood before him, and said : —
" Thy son Ben-hadad king of Syria hath sent me to
thee, saying. Shall I recover of this disease?" And
Elisha said unto him : — " Go, say unto him. Thou
mayest certainly recover : howbeit the Lord hath shewed
me that he shall surely die." And he settled his counte-
nance stedfastly, until he was ashamed : and the man of
God wept. And Hazael said: — "Why weepeth my
lord?" And he answered: — "Because I know the
evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel : their
strong holds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men
wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash their chil-
dren, and rip up their women with child." And Hazael
said : — ^" But what, is thy servant a dog, that he should
do this great thing?" And Elisha answered: — "The
Lord hath shewed me that thou shalt be king over
Syria." So he departed from Elisha, and came to his
master; who said to him:- — "What said Elisha to
thee?" And he answered: — -"He told me that thou
shouldest surely recover." And it came to pass on the
morrow, that he took a thick cloth, and dipped it in
water, and spread it on his face, so that he died : and
Hazael reigned in his stead.
And in the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab king
of Israel, Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah
began to reign. Thirty and two years old was he when
he began to reign ; and he reigned eight years in Jeru-
salem. And he walked in the way of the kings of
Israel, as did the house of Ahab : for the daughter of
Ahab was his wife : and he did evil in the sight of the
Lord. Yet the Lord would not destroy Judah for David
His servant's sake, as He promised him to give him a
lamp for his children alway. In his days Edom revolted
from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over
192 11. KINGS [viii. 21— ix. 5
themselves. So Joram went over to Zair, and all the
chariots with him : and he rose by night, and smote the
Edomites which compassed him about, and the captains
of the chariots : and the people fled into their tents.
Yet Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah unto
this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time. And
the rest of the acts of Joram, and all that he did, are
they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Judah? And Joram slept with his fathers, and
was buried with his fathers in the city of David : and
Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead.
In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of
Israel did Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah
begin to reign. Two and twenty years old was Ahaziah
when he began to reign ; and he reigned one year in
Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Athaliah, the
daughter of Omri king of Israel. And he walked in the
way of the house of Ahab, and did evil in the sight of the
Lord, as did the house of Ahab : for he was the son in
law of the house of Ahab. And he went with Joram the
son of Ahab to the war against Hazael king of Syria
in Ramoth-gilead ; and the Syrians wounded Joram.
And king Joram went back to be healed in Jezreel of
the wounds which the Syrians had given him at Ramah,
when he fought against Hazael king of Syria. And
Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to
see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was
sick.
And Elisha the prophet called one of the children of
the prophets, and said unto him : — " Gird up thy loins,
and take this box of oil in thine hand, and go to Ramoth-
gilead : and when thou comest thither, look out there
Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go
in, and make him arise up from among his brethren,
and carry him to an inner chamber; then take the box
of oil, and pour it on his head, and say. Thus saith the
Lord, I have anointed thee king over Israel. Then open
the door, and flee, and tarry not."
So the young man, even the young man the prophet,
went to Ramoth-gilead. And when he came, behold,
the captains of the host were sitting ; and he said : — " I
have an errand to thee, O captain." And Jehu said : —
ix. 6-18] II. KINGS 193
" Unto which of all us?" And he said :— " To thee, O
captain." And he arose, and went into the house; and
he poured the oil on his head, and said unto him : —
"Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I have anointed
thee king over the people of the Lord, even over Israel.
And thou shalt smite the house of Ahab thy master, that
I may avenge the blood of My servants the prophets,
and the blood of all the servants of the Lord, at the
hand of Jezebel. For the whole house of Ahab shall
perish : and I will cut off from Ahab every man child,
and him that is shut up and left in Israel : and I will
make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the
son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of
Ahijah : and the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the portion
of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her." And
he opened the door, and fled.
Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord :
and one said unto him : — " Is all well? wherefore came
this mad fellow to thee?" And he said unto them: —
" Ye know the man, and his communication. " And they
said: — "It is false; tell us now." And he said: —
" Thus and thus spake he to me, saying. Thus saith
the Lord, I have anointed thee king over Israel."
Then they hasted, and took every man his gar-
ment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and
blew with trumpets, saying: — "Jehu is king." So
Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired
against Joram. (Now Joram had kept Ramoth-gilead,
he and all Israel, because of Hazael king of Syria. But
king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the
wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he
fought with Hazael king of Syria.) And Jehu said : —
" If it be your minds, then let none go forth nor escape
out of the city to go to tell it in Jezreel."
So Jehu rode in a chariot, and went to Jezreel ; for
Joram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah was come
down to see Joram. And there stood a watchman on
the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu
as he came, and said: — "I see a company." And
Joram said: — "Take an horseman, and send to meet
them, and let him say. Is it peace?" So there went
one on horseback to meet him, and said : — " Thus saith
VOL. II. H
194 n. KINGS [ix. 19-30
the king-, Is it peace?" And Jehu said : — " What hast
thou to do with peace? turn thee behind me." And the
watchman told, saying: — "The messenger came to
them, but he cometh not again." Then he sent out a
second on horseback, which came to them and said : —
"Thus saith the king. Is it peace?" And Jehu an-
swered : — " What hast thou to do with peace? turn thee
behind me." And the watchman told, saying: — " He
came even unto them, and cometh not again : and the
driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi ;
for he driveth furiously." And Joram said: — " Make
ready." And his chariot was made ready. And Joram
king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each
in his chariot, and they went out against Jehu, and met
him in the portion of Naboth the Jezreelite. And it
came to pass, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said : — " Is
it peace, Jehu?" And he answered : — " What peace, so
long as the whoredoms of thy mother Jezebel and her
witchcrafts are so many?" And Joram turned his
hands, and fled, and said to Ahaziah : — " Treachery, O
Ahaziah. " And Jehu drew a bow with his full strength,
and smote Jehoram between his arms, and the arrow
went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot.
Then said Jehu to Bidkar his captain : — " Take up, and
cast him in the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezreel-
ite : for remember how that, when I and thou rode to-
gether after Ahab his father, the Lord laid this burden
upon him ; surely I have seen yesterday the blood of
Naboth, and the blood of his sons, saith the Lord ; and
I will requite thee in this plat, saith the Lord. Now
therefore take and cast him into the plat of ground,
according to the word of the Lord. "
But when Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled
by the way of the garden house. And Jehu followed
after him, and said : — " Smite him also in the chariot."
And they did so at the going up to Gur, which is bv
Ibleam. And he fled to Megiddo, and died there. And
his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and
buried him in his sepulchre with his fathers in the city
of David. And in the eleventh year of Joram the son
of Ahab began Ahaziah to reign over Judah.
And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of
ix. 31— X. 6] 11. KINGS 195
it; and she painted her face, and tired her head, and
looked out at a window. And as Jehu entered in at the
gate, she said : — " Had Zimri peace, who slew his
master?" And he lifted up his face to the window, and
said : — " Who is on my side? who?" And there looked
out to him two or three eunuchs. And he said :■ —
"Throw her down." So they threw her down: and
some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on
the horses : and he trode her under foot. And when he
was come in, he did eat and drink, and said: — "Go,
see now this cursed woman, and bury her : for she is
a king's daughter." And they went to bury her: but
they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet,
and the palms of her hands. Wherefore they came
again, and told him. And he said : — " This is the word
of the Lord, which He spake by His servant Elijah the
Tishbite, saying, In the portion of Jezreel shall dogs
eat the flesh of Jezebel : and the carcase of Jezebel
shall be as dung upon the face of the field in the
portion of Jezreel; so that they shall not say, This is
Jezebel."
And Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. And Jehu
wrote letters, and sent to Samaria, unto the rulers of
Jezreel, to the elders, and to them that brought up
Ahab's children, saying: — " Now as soon as this letter
Cometh to you, seeing your master's sons are with you,
and there are with you chariots and horses, a fenced city
also, and armour ; look even out the best and meetest
of your master's sons, and set him on his father's
throne, and fight for your master's house." But they
were exceedingly afraid, and said : — " Behold, two kings
stood not before him : how then shall we stand?" And
he that was over the house, and he that was over the
city, the elders also, and the bringers up of the chil-
dren, sent to Jehu, saying : — " We are thy servants, and
will do all that thou shalt bid us ; we will not make any
king : do thou that which is good in thine eyes." Then
he wrote a letter the second time to them, saying : — " If
ye be mine, and if ye will hearken unto my voice, take
ye the heads of the men your master's sons, and come
to me to Jezreel by to-morrow this time." Now the
king's sons, being seventy persons, were with the great
196 II. KINGS [x. 7-19
men of the city, which brought them up. And it came
to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the
king's sons, and slew seventy persons, and put their
heads in baskets, and sent him them to Jezreel. And
there came a messenger, and told him, saying : — " They
have brought the heads of the king's sons." And he
said : — " Lay ye them in two heaps at the entering in of
the gate until the morning." And it came to pass in the
morning, that he went out, and stood, and said to all
the people: — "Ye be righteous: behold, I conspired
against my master, and slew him : but who slew all
these? Know now that there shall fall unto the earth
nothing of the word of the Lord, which the Lord spake
concerning the house of Ahab : for the Lord hath done
that which He spake by His servant Elijah."
So Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab
in Jezreel, and all his great men, and his kinsfolks, and
his priests, until he left him none remaining. And he
arose and departed, and came to Samaria. And as he
was at the shearing house in the way, Jehu met with the
brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah, and said : — " Who
are ye?" And they answered : — " We are the brethren
of Ahaziah ; and we go down to salute the children of
the king and the children of the queen. " And he said : —
"Take them alive." And they took them alive, and
slew them at the pit of the shearing house, even two
and forty men ; neither left he any of them.
And when he was departed thence, he lighted on
Jehonadab the son of Rechab coming to meet him : and
he saluted him, and said to him : — " Is thine heart right,
as my heart is with thy heart?" And Jehonadab an-
swered : — " It is." " If it be, give me thine hand."
And he gave him his hand ; and he took him up to him
into the chariot. And he said : — " Come with me, and
see my zeal for the Lord." So they made him ride in
his chariot. And when he came to Samaria, he slew
all that remained unto Ahab in Samaria, till he had
destroyed him, according to the saying of the Lord,
which He spake to Elijah.
And Jehu gathered all the people together, and said
unto them : — •" Ahab served Baal a little; but Jehu shall
serve him much. Now therefore call unto me all the
X. 20-31] 11. KINGS 197
prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests ;
let none be wanting- : for I have a great sacrifice to do to
Baal; whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live."
But Jehu did it in subtilty, to the intent that he might
destroy the worshippers of Baal. And Jehu said : —
"Proclaim a solemn assembly for Baal." And they
proclaimed it. And Jehu sent through all Israel : and
all the worshippers of Baal came, so that there was not
a man left that came not. And they came into the house
of Baal ; and the house of Baal was full from one end
to another. And he said unto him that was over the
vestry: — " Bring forth vestments for all the worship-
pers of Baal." And he brought them forth vestments.
And Jehu went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into
the house of Baal, and said unto the worshippers of
Baal : — " Search, and look that there be here with you
none of the servants of the Lord, but the worshippers of
Baal only." And when they went in to offer sacrifices
and burnt offerings, Jehu appointed fourscore men with-
out, and said: — "If any of the men whom I have
brought into your hands escape, he that letteth him go,
his life shall be for the life of him. " And it came to pass,
as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt
offering, that Jehu said to the guard and to the cap-
tains : — " Go in, and slay them; let none come forth."
And they smote them with the edge of the sword ; and
the guard and the captains cast them out, and went to
the city of the house of Baal. And they brought forth
the images out of the house of Baal, and burned them.
And they brake down the image of Baal, and brake
down the house of Baal, and made it a draught house
unto this day.
Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel. Howbeit
from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made
Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit,
the golden calves that were in Beth-el, and that were in
Dan. And the Lord said unto Jehu : — " Because thou
hast done well in executing that which is right in Mine
eyes, and hast done unto the house of Ahab according
to all that was in Mine heart, thy children of the fourth
generation shall sit on the throne of Israel." But Jehu
took no heed to walk in the law of the Lord God of
198 II. KINGS [x. 32— xi. 9
Israel with all his heart : for he departed not from the
sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin.
In those days the Lord began to cut Israel short :
and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel ; from
Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and
the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which
is by the river Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan. Now
the rest of the acts of Jehu, and all that he did, and all
his might, are they not written in the book of the
chronicles of the kings of Israel? And Jehu slept with
his fathers : and they buried him in Samaria. And
Jehoahaz his son reigned in his stead. And the time
that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty
and eight years.
And when Athaliah the mother of Ahazlah saw that
her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed
royal. But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram,
sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and
stole him from among the king's sons which were slain ;
and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bed-
chamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain. And
he was with her hid in the house of the Lord six years.
And Athaliah did reign over the land.
And the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the
rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard,
and brought them to him into the house of the Lord,
and made a covenant with them, and took an oath of
them in the house of the Lord, and shewed them the
king's son. And he commanded them, saying : — " This
is the thing that ye shall do : A third part of you that
enter in on the sabbath shall even be keepers of the
watch of the king's house; and a third part shall be at
the gate of Sur; and a third part at the gate behind the
guard : so shall ye keep the watch of the house, that it
be not broken down. And two parts of all you that
go forth on the sabbath, even they shall keep the watch
of the house of the Lord about the king. And ye shall
compass the king round about, every man with his
weapons in his hand : and he that cometh within the
ranges, let him be slain : and be ye with the king as he
goeth out and as he cometh in. " And the captains over,
the hundreds did according to all things that Jehoiada
xi. 10-20] II. KINGS 199
the priest commanded : and they took every man his
men that were to come in on the sabbath, with them
that should go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoi-
ada the priest. And to the captains over hundreds did
the priest give king David's spears and shields, that
were in the temple of the Lord. And the guard stood,
every man with his weapons in his hand, round about
the king, from the right corner of the temple to the left
corner of the temple, along by the altar and the temple.
And he brought forth the king's son, and put the crown
upon him, and gave him the testimony ; and they made
him king, and anointed him ; and they clapped their
hands, and said : — " God save the king."
And when Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and
of the people, she came to the people into the tem.ple of
the Lord. And when she looked, behold, the king stood
by a pillar, as the manner was, and the princes and the
trumpeters by the king, and all the people of the land
rejoiced, and blew with trumpets : and Athaliah rent her
clothes, and cried : — " Treason, Treason." But Jehoi-
ada the priest commanded the captains of the hundreds,
the ofiicers of the host, and said unto them: — " Have
her forth without the ranges : and him that followeth
her kill with the sword." For the priest had said: —
" Let her not be slain in the house of the Lord." And
they laid hands on her; and she went by the way by
the which the horses came into the king's house : and
there was she slain.
And Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord and
the king and the people, that they should be the Lord's
people; between the king also and the people. And all
the people of the land went into the house of Baal, and
brake it down ; his altars and his images brake they in
pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal
before the altars. And the priest appointed officers over
the house of the Lord. And he took the rulers over
hundreds, and the captains, and the guard, and all the
people of the land; and they brought down the king
from the house of the Lord, and came by the way of
the gate of the guard to the king's house. And he
sat on the throne of the kings. And all the people
of the land rejoiced, and the city was in quiet : and
200 II. KINGS [xi. 21 — xii. 12
they slew Athaliah with the sword beside the king's
house.
Seven years old was Jehoash when he began to reign.
In the seventh year of Jehu Jehoash began to reign ; and
forty years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's
name was Zibiah of Beer-sheba. And Jehoash did that
which was right in the sight of the Lord all his days
wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him. But the high
places were not taken away : the people still sacrificed
and burnt incense in the high places. And Jehoash said
to the priests : — " All the money of the dedicated things
that is brought into the house of the Lord, even the
money of every one that passeth the account, the
money that every man is set at, and all the money that
cometh into any man's heart to bring into the house of
the Lord, let the priests take it to them, every man of
his acquaintance : and let them repair the breaches of
the house, wheresoever any breach shall be found." But
it was so, that in the three and twentieth year of king
Jehoash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the
house. Then king Jehoash called for Jehoiada the
priest, and the other priests, and said unto them :■ — -
" Why repair ye not the breaches of the house? now
therefore receive no more money of your acquaintance,
but deliver it for the breaches of the house." And the
priests consented to receive no more money of the
people, neither to repair the breaches of the house. But
Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in
the lid of it, and set it beside the altar, on the right side
as one cometh into the house of the Lord : and the
priests that kept the door put therein all the money that
was brought into the house of the Lord. And it was
so, when they saw that there was much money in the
chest, that the king's scribe and the high priest came
up, and they put up in bags, and told the money that
was found in the house of the Lord. And they gave
the money, being told, into the hands of them that did
the work, that had the oversight of the house of the
Lord : and they laid it out to the carpenters and builders,
that wrought upon the house of the Lord, and to
masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and
hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the
xii. 13— xiii. 5] 11. KINGS 201
Lord, and for all that was laid out for the house to
repair it. Howbeit there were not made for the house
of the Lord bowls of silver, snuffers, basons, trumpets,
any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money
that was brought into the house of the Lord : but they
gave that to the workmen, and repaired therewith the
house of the Lord. Moreover they reckoned not with
the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to
be bestowed on workmen : for they dealt faithfully.
The trespass money and sin money was not brought
into the house of the Lord : it was the priests'.
Then Hazael king of Syria went up, and fought
against Gath, and took it : and Hazael set his face to
go up to Jerusalem. And Jehoash king of Judah took
all the hallowed things that Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram,
and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had dedicated,
and his own hallowed things, and all the gold that was
found in the treasures of the house of the Lord, and in
the king's house, and sent it to Hazael king of Syria :
and he went away from Jerusalem.
And the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did,
are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Judah? And his servants arose, and made a
conspiracy, and slew Joash in the house of Millo, which
goeth down to Silla. For Jozachar the son of Shimeath,
and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his servants, smote
him, and he died ; and they buried him with his fathers
in the city of David : and Amaziah his son reigned in
his stead.
In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of
Ahaziah king of Judah Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began
to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen
years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of
the Lord, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of
Nebat, which made Israel to sin ; he departed not there-
from. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against
Israel, and He delivered them into the hand of Hazael
king of Syria, and into the hand of Ben-hadad the son
of Hazael, all their days. And Jehoahaz besought the
Lord, and the Lord hearkened unto him : for He saw the
oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed
them. (And the Lord gave Israel a saviour, so that
n 2
202 II. KINGS [xiii. 6-18
they went out from under the hand of the Syrians : and
the children of Israel dwelt in their tents, as beforetime.
Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the
house of Jeroboam, who made Israel to sin, but walked
therein : and there remained the Asherah also in
Samaria.) Neither did he leave of the people to Jeho-
ahaz but fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten
thousand footmen ; for the king of Syria had destroyed
them, and had made them like the dust by threshing.
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, and all that he
did, and his might, are they not written in the book of
the chronicles of the kings of Israel? And Jehoahaz
slept with his fathers ; and they buried him in Samaria :
and Joash his son reigned in his stead.
In the thirty and seventh year of Joash king of Judah
began Joash the son of Jehoahaz to reign over Israel in
Samaria, and reigned sixteen years. And he did that
which was evil in the sight of the Lord ; he departed not
from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who
made Israel sin : but he walked therein. And the rest
of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, and his might
wherewith he fought against Amaziah king of Judah,
are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Israel? And Joash slept with his fathers; and
Jeroboam sat upon his throne : and Joash was buried
in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof
he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto
him, and wept over his face, and said : — " O my father,
my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen there-
of." And Elisha said unto him: — "Take bow and
arrows." And he took unto him bow and arrows. And
he said to the king of Israel : — -" Put thine hand upon
the bow." And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha
put his hands upon the king's hands. And he said : —
"Open the window eastward." And he opened it.
Then Elisha said: — " Shoot." And he shot. And he
said : — " The arrow of the Lord's deliverance, and the
arrow of deliverance from Syria : for thou shalt smite
the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them."
And he said: — "Take the arrows." And he took
them. And he said unto the king of Israel: — " Smite
xiii. 19— xiv. 6] II. KINGS 203
upon the ground." And he smote thrice, and stayed.
And the man of God was wroth with him, and said : —
" Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then
hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it :
whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice."
And EUsha died, and they buried him. And the bands
of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of
the year. And it came to pass, as they were burying a
man, that, behold, they spied a band of men; and they
cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha : and when the
man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he
revived, and stood up on his feet.
But Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days
of Jehoahaz. And the Lord was gracious unto them,
and had compassion on them, and had respect unto
them, because of His covenant v/ith Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast He them
from His presence as yet. So Hazael king of Syria died ;
and Ben-hadad his son reigned in his stead. And Je-
hoash the son of Jehoahaz took again out of the hand
of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities, which he had
taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war.
Three times did Joash beat him, and recovered the cities
of Israel.
In the second year of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of
Israel reigned Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah.
He was twenty and five years old when he began to
reign, and reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem.
And his mother's name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem.
And he did that which was right in the sight of the
Lord, yet not like David his father : he did according
to all things as Joash his father did. Howbeit the high
places were not taken away : as yet the people did
sacrifice and burnt incense on the high places. And
it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was confirmed
in his hand, that he slew his servants which had slain
the king his father. But the children of the murderers
he slew not : according unto that which is written in
the book of the law of Moses, wherein the Lord com-
manded, saying : — " The fathers shall not be put to
death for the children, nor the children be put to death
for the fathers ; but every man shall be put to death
204 II. KINGS [xiv. 7-20
for his own sin." He slew of Edom in the valley of
salt ten thousand, and took Selah by war, and called
the name of it Joktheel unto this day.
Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash, the son of
Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying : — " Come,
let us look one another in the face." And Jehoash the
king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying :
— " The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar
that was in Lebanon, saying. Give thy daughter to my
son to wife : and there passed by a wild beast that was
in Lebanon, and trode down the thistle. Thou hast
indeed smitten Edom, and thine heart hath lifted thee
up : glory of this, and tarry at home : for why shouldest
thou meddle to thy hurt, that thou shouldest fall, even
thou, and Judah with thee?" But Amaziah would not
hear. Therefore Jehoash king of Israel went up ; and
he and Amaziah king of Judah looked one another in
the face at Beth-shemesh, which belongeth to Judah.
And Judah was put to the worse before Israel ; and they
fled every man to their tents. And Jehoash king of
Israel took Ama.ziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash
the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and came to
Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from
the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred
cubits. And he took all the gold and silver, and all
the vessels that were found in the house of the Lord, and
in the treasures of the king's house, and hostages, and
returned to Samaria.
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did,
and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king
of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chron-
icles of the kings of Israel? And Jehoash slept Vv^ith
his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings
of Israel ; and Jeroboam his son reigned in his stead.
And Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived
after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of
Israel fifteen years. And the rest of the acts of Ama-
ziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles
of the kings of Judah? Now they made a conspiracy
against him in Jerusalem : and he fled to Lachish ; but
they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there.
And they brought him on horses ; and he was buried at
xiv. 21— XV. 6] 11. KINGS 205
Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David. And
all the people of Judah took Azariah, which was sixteen
years old, and made him king- instead of his father
Amaziah. He built Elath, and restored it to Judah,
after that the king- slept with his fathers.
In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash
king of Judah Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel
began to reign in Samaria, and reigned forty and one
years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of
the Lord : he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam
the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. He restored
the coast of Israel from the entering of Hamath unto
the sea of the plain, according to the word of the Lord
God of Israel, which He spake by the hand of His
servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet, which
was of Gath-hepher. For the Lord saw the affliction
of Israel, that it was very bitter : for there was not any
shut up, nor any left, nor any helper for Israel. And
the Lord said not that He would blot out the name of
Israel from under heaven : but He saved them by the
hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.
Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that
he did, and his might, how he warred, and how he re-
covered Damascus, and Hamath, which belonged to
Judah, for Israel, are they not written in the book of
the chronicles of the kings of Israel? And Jeroboam
slept with his fathers, even with the kings of Israel;
and Zechariah his son reigned in his stead.
In the twenty and seventh year of Jeroboam king of
Israel began Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah to
reign. Sixteen years old was he when he began to
reign, and he reigned two and fifty years in Jerusalem.
And his mother's name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem. And
he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord,
according to all that his father Amaziah had done ; save
that the high places were not removed : the people sacri-
ficed and burnt incense still on the high places. And
the Lord smote the king, so that he was a leper unto
the day of his death, and dwelt in a several house. And
Jotham the king's son was over the house, judging the
people of the land. And the rest of the acts of Azariah,
and all that he did, are they not written in the book
2o6 II. KINGS [xv. 7-20
of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? So Azariah
slept with his fathers ; and they buried him with his
fathers in the city of David : and Jotham his son reigned
in his stead.
In the thirty and eighth year of Azariah king of Judah
did Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reign over Israel
in Samaria six months. And he did that which was
evil in the sight of the Lord, as his fathers had done :
he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of
Nebat, who made Israel to sin. And Shallum the son
of Jabesh conspired against him, and smote him before
the people, and slew him, and reigned in his stead.
And the rest of the acts of Zechariah, behold, they are
written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of
Israel. This was the word of the Lord which He spake
unto Jehu, saying : — " Thy sons shall sit on the throne
of Israel unto the fourth generation. " And so it came to
pass.
Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the nine
and thirtieth year of Uzziah king of Judah ; and he
reigned a full month in Samaria. For Menahem the
son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, and came to Samaria,
and smote Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria, and
slew him, and reigned in his stead. And the rest of
the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he made,
behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles
of the kings of Israel.
Then Menahem smote Tiphsah, and all that were
therein, and the coasts thereof from Tirzah : because
they opened not to him, therefore he smote it; and all
the women therein that were with child he ripped up.
In the nine and thirtieth year of Azariah king of Judah
began Menahem the son of Gadi to reign over Israel,
and reigned ten years in Samaria. And he did that
which was evil in the sight of the Lord : he departed
not all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of
Nebat, who made Israel to sin. And Pul the king of
Assyria came against the land : and Menahem gave
Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be
with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand. And
Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the
mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of
XV. 21-34] II. KINGS 207
silver, to give to the king- of Assyria. So the king- of
Assyria turned back, and stayed not there in the land.
And the rest of the acts of Menahem, and all that he did,
are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Israel? And Menahem slept with his fathers;
and Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead.
In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekahiah
the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in
Samaria, and reigned two years. And he did that which
was evil in the sight of the Lord : he departed not from
the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel
to sin. But Pekah the son of Remaliah, a captain of
his, conspired against him, and smote him in Samaria,
in the palace of the king's house, with Argob and
Arieh, and with him fifty men of the Gileadites : and
he killed him, and reigned in his room. And the rest
of the acts of Pekahiah, and all that he did, behold,
they are written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Israel.
In the two and fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah
Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel
in Samaria, and reigned twenty years. And he did that
which was evil in the sight of the Lord : he departed
not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who
made Israel to sin. In the days of Pekah king of Israel
came Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon,
and Abel-beth-maachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and
Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali,
and carried them captive to Assyria. And Hoshea the
son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son
of Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him, and reigned
in his stead, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of
Uzziah. And the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all
that he did, behold, they are written in the book of
the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
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 Jerusa-
lem. And his mother's name was Jerusha, the daughter
of Zadok. And he did that which was right in the
sight of the Lord : he did according to all that his
2o8 11. KINGS [xv. 35— xvi. lo
father Uzziah had done. Howbeit the hig-h places were
not removed : the people sacrificed and burnt incense
still in the high places. He built the higher gate of the
house of the Lord. Now the rest of the acts of Jo-
tham, and all that he did, are they not written in the
book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? In those
days the Lord 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 reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and did not that
which was right in the sight of the Lord 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 heathen,
whom the Lord 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
drave the Jews from Elath : and the 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, which rise up against me."
And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in
the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's
house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.
And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him : for the
king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took
it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew
Rezin.
And king Ahaz Vv-ent to Damascus to meet Tiglath-
pileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was
at Damascus : and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest
xvi. II — xvii. 4] 11. KINGS 209
the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, accordinjj
to all the workmanship thereof. And Urijah the priest
built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent
from Damascus : so Urijah the priest made it against
king Ahaz came from Damascus. And when the king
was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar : and
the king approached to the altar, and offered thereon.
And he burnt his burnt offering and his meal offering,
and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood
of his peace offerings, upon the altar. And he brought
also the brasen altar, which was before the Lord, from
the forefront of the house, from between the altar and
the house of the Lord, and put it on the north side of
the 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 sacrifice, and his meal offering, with the
burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their
meal offering, and their drink offerings ; and sprinkle
upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the
blood of the sacrifice : and the brasen altar shall be for
me to enquire by." Thus did Urijah the priest, ac-
cording to all that king Ahaz commanded. And king
Ahaz cut off the borders 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 stones. And the covert for the sabbath
that they had built in the house, and the king's entry
without, turned he from the house of the Lord for 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.
In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began
Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel
nine years. And he did that which was evil in the sight
of the Lord, but not as the kings of Israel that were
before him. Against him came up Shalmaneser king
of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and gave
him presents. And the king of Assyria found con-
210 II. KINGS [xvii. 5-16
spiracy in Hoshea : for he had sent messengers to So
king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of
Assyria, as he had done year by year : therefore the king
of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison.
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 into Assyria, and
placed them in Halah and in Habor by the river of
Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. For so it was.
that the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord
their God, which had 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 heathen, whom the Lord cast out from
before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel,
which they had made. And the children of Israel did
secretly those things that were not right against the
Lord their God, and they built them high places in all
their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the
fenced city. And they set them up pillars and Asherim
in every high hill, and under every green tree : and there
they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the
heathen whom the Lord carried away before tl»em ; and
wrought wicked things to provoke the Lord to anger :
for they served idols, whereof the Lord had said unto
them: — "Ye shall not do this thing." Yet the Lord
testified against Israel, and against Judah, by all the
prophets, and by all the seers, 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 necks, like to the neck of their
fathers, that did not believe in the Lord their God. And
they rejected His statutes, and His covenant that He
made with their fathers, and His testimonies which He
testified against them ; and they followed vanity, and
became vain, and went after the heathen that were round
about them, concerning whom the Lord had charged
them, that they should not do like them. And they
left all the commandments of the Lord their God, and
xvii. 17-28] 11. KINGS 211
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 evil in the
sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger. Therefore
the Lord 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 command-
ments of the Lord their God, but walked in the statutes
of Israel which they made. And the Lord 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 drave Israel from following the Lord, and
made them sin a great sin. For the children of Israel
walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did ; they
departed not from them ; until the Lord removed Israel
out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the
prophets. So was Israel 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 Ava, and from Hamath,
and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of
Samaria instead of the children of Israel : and they
possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof. And
so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that
they feared not the Lord : therefore the Lord sent lions
among them, which slew some of them. Wherefore
they spake to the king of Assyria, saying: — "The
nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the
cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of
the land : therefore He hath sent lions among them,
and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the
manner 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 manner
of the God of the land." Then one of the priests whom
they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt
in Beth-el, and taught them how they should fear the
212 II. KINGS [xvii. 29 — xviii. 2
Lord. 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 Avites made
Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burnt their
children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the
g'ods of Sepharvaim.
So they feared the Lord, and made unto themselves
of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which
sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.
They feared the Lord, and served their own gods, after
the manner of the nations whom they carried away from
thence. Unto this day they do after the former man-
ners : they fear not the Lord, neither do they after their
statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and
commandment which the Lord commanded the children
of Jacob, whom He named Israel ; with whom the Lord
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 the
Lord, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with
great power and a stretched out arm. Him shall ye fear,
and Him shall ye worship, and to Him shall ye do
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 the Lord your God ye shall fear ; and He
shall 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 the Lord, and
served their graven images, both their children, and
their children's children : as did their fathers, so do they
unto this day.
Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son
of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz
king of Judah began to reign. Twenty and five years
old was he when he began to reign ; and he reigned
twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's
xviii. 3-16] II. KINGS 213
name also was Abi, the daughter of Zechariah. And
he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord,
according to all that David his father did. He re-
moved the high places, and brake the images, and cut
down the Asherah, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent
that Moses had made : for unto those days the children
of Israel did burn incense to it : and he called it Nehush-
tan. He trusted in the Lord God of Israel; so that
after him was none like him among all the kings of
Judah, nor any that were before him. For he clave to
the Lord, and departed not from following Him, but
kept His commandments, which the Lord commanded
Moses. And the Lord was with him ; and he prospered
whithersoever he went forth : and he rebelled against
the king of Assyria, and served him not. He smote
the Philistines, even unto Gaza, and the borders
thereof, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced
city.
And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Heze-
kiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah
king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came
up against Samaria, and besieged it. And at the end
of three years they took it : even in the sixth year of
Hezekiah, that is the ninth year of Hoshea king of
Israel, Samaria was taken. And the king of Assyria
did carry away Israel unto Assyria, and put them in
Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the
cities of the Medes : because they obeyed not the voice
of the Lord their God, but transgressed His covenant,
and all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded,
and would not hear them, nor do them.
Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did
Sennacherib king of Assyria come up against all the
fenced cities of Judah, and took them. And Hezekiah
king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish,
saying :—" I have offended; return from me: that
which thou puttest on me will I bear." And the king
of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah king of Judah
three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in
the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's
house. At that time did Hezekiah cut off the gold from
214 II. KINGS [xviii. 17-27
the doors of the temple of the Lord, and from the
pillars which Hezekiah king^ of Judah had overlaid, and
gave it to the king- of Assyria.
And the king- of Assyria sent the Tartan and the
Rabsaris and the Rab-shakeh from Lachish to king-
Hezekiah with a great host against Jerusalem. And
they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they
were come up, they came and stood by the conduit of the
upper pool, which is in the highway of the fuller's field.
And when they had called to the king, there came out to
them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, which was over the
household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of
Asaph the recorder. And the Rab-shakeh said unto
them: — " Speak ye now to Hezekiah, Thus saith the
great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this
wherein thou trustest? Thou sayest, (but they are but
vain words,) I have counsel and strength for the war.
Now on whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest
against me? Now, behold, thou trustest upon the staff
of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt, on which if a
man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it : so is
Pharaoh king of Egypt unto all that trust on him. But
if ye say unto me. We trust in the Lord our God : is not
that He, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah
hath taken away, and hath said to Judah and Jerusalem,
Ye shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem? Now
therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my lord the king
of Assyria, and I will deliver thee two thousand horses,
if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.
How then wilt thou turn away the face of one captain
of the least of my master's servants, and put thy trust
on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Am I now
come up without the Lord against this place to destroy
it? The Lord said to me, Go up against this land, and
destroy it." Then said Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and
Shebna, and Joah, unto the Rab-shakeh: — " Speak, I
pray thee, to thy servants in the Syrian language; for
we understand it: and talk not with us in the Jews'
language in the ears of the people that are on the wall."
But the Rab-shakeh said unto them: — "Hath my
master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak
these words? hath he not sent me to the men which sit
xviii. 28— xix. 3] II. KINGS 215
on the wall, that they may eat their own dung-, and drink
their own water with you?"
Then the Rab-shakeh stood and cried with a loud voice
in the Jews' language, and spake, saying :- — " Hear the
word of the great king, the king of Assyria : Thus
saith the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you : for he
shall not be able to deliver you out of his hand : neither
let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying. The
Lord will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be
delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria : hearken
not to Hezekiah : for thus saith the king of Assyria,
Make an agreement with me by a present, and come out
to me, and then eat ye every man of his own vine, and
every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the
waters of his cistern : until I come and take you away
to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine,
a land of bread and vineyards, a land 'of oil olive and of
honey, that ye may live, and not die : and hearken not
unto Hezekiah, when he persuadeth you, saying, The
Lord will deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the
nations delivered at all his land out of the hand of the
king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath, and
of Arpad? where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena,
and Ivah? have they delivered Samaria out of mine
hand? Who are they among all the gods of the coun-
tries, that have delivered their country out of mine
hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of mine
hand?" But the people held their peace, and answered
him not a word : for the king's commandment was,
saying: — " Answer him not."
Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, which was
over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the
son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their
clothes rent, and told him the words of the Rab-shakeh.
And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it,
that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sack-
cloth, and went into the house of the Lord. And he
sent Eliakim, which was over the household, and Shebna
the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with
sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz. And
they said unto him : — " Thus saith Hezekiah, This day
is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and blasphemy : for
2i6 11. KINGS [xix. 4-16
the children are come to the birth, and there is not
strength to bring- forth. It may be the Lord thy God
will hear all the words of the Rab-shakeh, whom the
king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the
living God ; and will reprove the words which the Lord
thy God hath heard : wherefore lift up thy prayer for the
remnant that are left."
So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
And Isaiah said unto them : — " Thus shall ye say to
your master, Thus saith the Lord, Be not afraid of the
words which thou hast heard, with which the servants
of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. Behold, I
will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour,
and shall return to his own land ; and I will cause him
to fall by the sword in his own land."
So the Rab-shakeh returned, and found the king of
Assyria warring against Libnah : for he had heard that
he was departed from Lachish. And when he heard
say of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia: — "Behold, he is
come out to fight against thee:" he sent messengers
again unto Hezekiah, saying: — "Thus shall ye speak
to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying. Let not thy God
in whom thou trustest deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem
shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of
Assyria. Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of
Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them
utterly : and shalt thou be delivered ? Have the gods
of the nations delivered them which my fathers have
destroyed ; as Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the
children of Eden which were in Thelasar? Where is
the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the
king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivah?"
And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the
messengers, and read it : and Hezekiah went up into
the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord.
And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said: — " O
Lord God of Israel, which dwellest between the cheru-
bim. Thou art the God, even Thou alone, of all the
kingdoms of the earth; Thou hast made heaven and
earth. Lord, bow down Thine ear, and hear : open.
Lord, Thine eyes, and see : and hear the words of Sen-
nacherib, wherewith he hath sent him to reproach the
xix. 17-26] II. KINGS 217
living God. Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria
have destroyed the nations and their lands, and have
cast their gods into the fire : for they were no gods, but
the work of men's hands, wood and stone: therefore
they have destroyed them. Now therefore, O Lord our
God, I beseech Thee, save Thou us out of his hand,
that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that Thou
art the Lord God, even Thou only."
Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, say-
ing : — " Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, That which
thou hast prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of
Assyria I have heard. This is the word that the Lord
hath spoken concerning him : —
Hath despised thee, hath laughed thee to scorn.
The virgin, the daughter of Zion :
Behind thy back hath shaken the head the
daughter of Jerusalem.
Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed?
And against whom hast thou exalted thy voice,
And lifted up thine eyes on high?
Against the Holy One of Israel !
By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord,
and said.
With the multitude of my chariots have I climbed
the heights of the mountains,
To the innermost parts of Lebanon ;
And I hewed down the topmost branch of her
cedars.
The choicest of her fir trees ;
And I pressed forward into her farthest lodging
place,
The forest of her fruitful field.
I have digged and drunk strange waters.
And have dried up with the sole of my feet
All the rivers of Egypt.
Hast thou not heard? Long ago have I done it.
And from the days of old have I fashioned it ;
Now have I brought it to pass,
That thou shouldest be to lay waste fenced cities
into ruinous heaps.
And their inhabitants in shortness of arm
Were terrified and ashamed ;
2i8 II. KINGS [xix. 27-37
They were as grass of the field, and as green
herb,
As grass on the house-tops, and as corn blasted
before it is grown up.
Thy sitting down, and thy going out, and thy
coming in do I know,
And also thy raging against Me;
Because thy raging against Me, and thy pride
Is come up into Mine ears,
Therefore shall I put My hook in thy nose
And My bridle in thy lips,
And I will turn thee back by the way by which
thou earnest.
" And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this
year such things as grow of themselves, and in the
second year that which springeth of the same ; and in
the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards,
and eat the fruits thereof. And the remnant that is
escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root
downward, and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusa-
lem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out
of mount Zion : the zeal of the Lord of hosts shall do
this.
" Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king
of Assyria : —
He shall not come unto this city,
Nor shoot an arrow there,
Nor come before it with shield,
Nor cast a mound against it.
By the way that he came, by the same shall he
return.
And shall not come unto this city, saith the Lord.
For I will defend this city, to save it,
For Mine own sake, and for My servant David's
sake."
And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the
Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians
an hundred fourscore and five thousand : and when
they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all
dead corpses. So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed,
and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. And
it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of
XX. I-I3] II. KINGS 219
Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sherezer his
sons smote him with the sword : and they escaped into
the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned
in his stead.
In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And
tlie prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and
said unto him : — " Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house
in order; for thou shalt die, and not Hve. " Then he
turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the Lord,
saying : — " I beseech Thee, O Lord, remember now
how I have walked before Thee in truth and with a
perfect heart, and have done that which is good in Thy
sight." And Hezekiah wept sore. And it came to
pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court,
that the word of the Lord came to him, saying : —
" Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my
people, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy
father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears :
behold, I will heal thee : on the third day thou shalt go
up unto the house of the Lord. And I will add unto
thy days fifteen years ; and I will deliver thee and this
city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will
defend this city for Mine own sake, and for My servant
David's sake."
And Isaiah said : — " Take a lump of figs." And they
took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered. And
Hezekiah said unto Isaiah : — " What shall be the sign
that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up into
the house of the Lord the third day?" And Isaiah
said : — " This sign shalt thou have of the Lord, that the
Lord will do the thing that He hath spoken : shall the
shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten de-
grees?" And Hezekiah answered: — "It is a light
thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees : nay, but
let the shadow return backward ten degrees." And
Isaiah the prophet cried unto the Lord : and He brought
the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone
down in the dial of Ahaz.
_ At that time Berodach-baladan, the son of Baladan
king of Babylon, sent letters and a present unto Heze-
kiah : for he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick.
And Hezekiah hearkened unto them, and shewed them
220 IL KINGS [xx. 14— xxi. 5
all the house of his precious things, the silver, and the
gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and
all the house of his armour, and all that was found in
his treasures : there was nothing in his house, nor in
all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not. Then
came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said
unto him : — " What said these men? and from whence
came they unto thee?" And Hezekiah said: — "They
are come from a far country, even from Babylon." And
he said : — " What have they seen in thine house?" And
Hezekiah answered : — " All the things that are in mine
house have they seen : there is nothing among my
treasures that I have not shewed them." And Isaiah
said unto Hezekiah : — " Hear the word of the Lord.
Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house,
and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto
this day, shall be carried into Babylon : nothing shall
be left, saith the Lord. And of thy sons that shall
issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take
away ; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the
king of Babylon." Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah : —
" Good is the word of the Lord which thou hast
spoken." And he said: — " Is it not so, if peace and
truth be in my days?"
And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his
might, and how he made a pool, and a conduit, and
brought water into the city, are they not written in the
book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And
Hezekiah slept with his fathers : and Manasseh his son
reigned in his stead.
Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to
reign, and reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem.
And his mother's name was Hephzi-bah. And he did
that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, after the
abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out
before the children of Israel. For he built up again the
high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed ;
and he reared up altars for Baal, and made an Asherah,
as did Ahab king of Israel ; and worshipped all the host
of heaven, and served them. And he built altars in the
house of the Lord, of which the Lord said : — " In Jeru-
salem will I put My name." And he built altars for all
xxi. 6-18] II. KINGS 221
the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the
Lord. And he made his son pass through the fire, and
observed times, and used enchantments, and dealt with
familiar spirits and wizards : he wrought much wicked-
ness in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger.
And he set the graven image of the Asherah that he had
made, in the house of which the Lord said to David,
and to Solomon his son: — "In this house, and in
Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of
Israel, will I put My name for ever : neither will I make
the feet of Israel move any more out of the land which
I gave their fathers ; only if they will observe to do
according to all that I have commanded them, and ac-
cording to all the law that My servant Moses commanded
them." But they hearkened not: and Manasseh
seduced them to do more evil than did the nations whom
the Lord destroyed before the children of Israel.
And the Lord spake by His servants the prophets,
saying : — " Because Manasseh king of Judah hath done
these abominations, and hath done wickedly above all
that the Amorites did, which were before him, and hath
made Judah also to sin with his idols : therefore thus
saith the Lord God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such
evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth
of it, both his ears shall tingle. And I will stretch over
Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the
house of Ahab : and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man
wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.
And I will forsake the remnant of Mine inheritance, and
deliver them into the hand of their enemies ; and they
shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies ;
because they have done that which was evil in My sight,
and have provoked Me to anger, since the day their
fathers came forth out of Egypt, even unto this day."
Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much,
till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another ;
beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing
that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.
Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and all that he
did, and his sin that he sinned, are they not written in
the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And
Manasseh slept with his fathers, and was buried in the
222 II. KINGS [xxi. 19 — xxii. 7
garden of his own house, in the garden of Uzza : and
Amon his son reigned in his stead.
Amon was twenty and two years old when he began
to reign, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. And
his mother's name was Meshullemeth, the daughter of
Haruz of Jotbah. And he did that which was evil in
the sight of the Lord, as his father Manasseh did. And
he walked in all the way that his father walked in, and
served the idols that his father served, and worshipped
them : and he forsook the Lord God of his fathers, and
walked not in the way of the Lord. And the servants
of Amon conspired against him, and slew the king in
his own house. And the people of the land slew all
them that had conspired against king Amon ; and the
people of the land made Josiah his son king in his
stead. Now the rest of the acts of Amon which he did,
are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Judah? And he was buried in his sepulchre
in the garden of Uzza : and Josiah his son reigned in his
stead.
Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem. And
his mother's name was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah
of Bozkath. And he did that which was right in the
sight of the Lord, and walked in all the way of David
his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to
the left. And it came to pass in the eighteenth year
of king Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan the son of
Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house
of the Lord, saying: — "Go up to Hilkiah the high
priest, that he may sum the silver which is brought into
the house of the Lord, which the keepers of the door
have gathered of the people : and let them deliver it
into the hand of the doers of the work, that have the
oversight of the house of the Lord : and let them give
it to the doers of the work which is in the house of the
Lord, to repair the breaches of the house, unto car-
penters, and builders, and masons, and to buy timber
and hewn stone to repair the house." Howbeit there
was no reckoning made with them of the money that
was delivered into their hand, because they dealt faith-
fully.
xxii. 8-19] 11. KINGS 223
And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the
scribe : — " I have found the book of the law in the house
of the Lord." And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan,
and he read it. And Shaphan the scribe came to the
king, and brought the king word again, and said :—
" Thy servants have gathered the money that was found
in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of
them that do the work, that have the oversight of the
house of the Lord." And Shaphan the scribe shewed
the king, saying: — " Hilkiah the priest hath delivered
me a book." And Shaphan read it before the king.
And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words
of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes. And the
king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the
son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Michaiah, and
Shaphan the scribe, and Asahiah a servant of the king's,
saying : — " Go ye, enquire of the Lord for me, and for
the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of
this book that is found : for great is the wrath of the
Lord that is kindled against me, because our fathers
have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do
according unto all that which is written concerning us."
So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and
Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the pro-
phetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son
of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in
Jerusalem in the college ;) and they communed with
her. And she said unto them : — " Thus saith the Lord
God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me, Thus
saith the Lord, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place,
and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of
the book which the king of Judah hath read : because
they have forsaken Me, and have burnt incense unto
other gods, that they might provoke Me to anger with
all the works of their hands ; therefore My wrath shall
be kindled against this place, and shall not be quenched.
But to the king of Judah which sent you to enquire of
the Lord, thus shall ye say to him, Thus saith the Lord
God of Israel, As touching the words which thou hast
heard ; because thine heart was tender, and thou hast
humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest
what I spake against this place, and against the in-
224 ^^- KINGS [xxii. 20 — xxiii. 8
habitants thereof, that they should become a desolation
and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before
Me ; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. Behold
therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou
shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace ; and thine
eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon
this place. "
And they brought the king word again. And the
king sent, and they gathered unto him all the elders
of Judah and of Jerusalem. And the king went up
into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the
priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small
and great : and he read in their ears all the words of
the book of the covenant which was found in the house
of the Lord. And the king stood by a pillar, and made
a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and
to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His
statutes with all his heart and all his soul, to perform
the words of this covenant that were written in this
book. And all the people stood to the covenant. And
the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the
priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door,
to bring forth out of the temple of the Lord all the
vessels that were made for Baal, and for the Asherah,
and for all the host of heaven : and he burned them with-
out Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes
of them unto Beth-el. And he put down the idolatrous
priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn
incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in
the places round about Jerusalem ; them also that burned
incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to
the planets, and to all the host of heaven. And he
brought out the Asherah from the house of the Lord,
without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned
it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder,
and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the
children of the people. And he brake down the houses
of the sodomites, that were by the house of the Lord,
where the women wove hangings for the Asherah. And
he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and
defiled the high places where the priests had burned
xxiii. 9-17] 11. KINGS 225
incense, from Geba to Beer-sheba, and brake down the
high places of the gates that were in the entering in of
the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were
on a man's left hand at the gate of the city. Neverthe-
less the priests of the high places came not up to the
altar of the Lord in Jerusalem, but they did eat of the
unleavened bread among their brethren. And he defiled
Topheth, which is in the valley of the children of Hin-
nom, that no man might make his son or his daughter
to pass through the fire to Molech. And he took away
the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the
sun, at the entering in of the house of the Lord, by the
chamber of Nathan-melech the chamberlain, which was
in the precincts, and burned the chariots of the sun with
fire. And the altars that were on the top of the upper
chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made,
and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two
courts of the house of the Lord, did the king beat down,
and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust
of them into the brook Kidron. And the high places
that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right
hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the
king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the abomination
of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of
the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the
children of Ammon, did the king defile. And he brake
in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Asherim, and
filled their places with the bones of men.
Moreover the altar that was at Beth-el, and the high
place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made
Israel to sin, had made, both that altar and the high
place he brake down, and burned the high place, and
stamped it small to powder, and burned the Asherah.
And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres
that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the
bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon
the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the
Lord which the man of God proclaimed, who pro-
claimed these words. Then he said : — " What monu-
ment is that that I see?" And the men of the city
told him : — " It is the sepulchre of the man of God,
which came from Judah, and proclaimed these things
VOL. II. 1
226 II. KINGS [xxiii. 18-29
that thou hast done against the altar of Beth-el." And
he said :^ — ^" Let him alone; let no man move his
bones." So they let his bones alone, with the bones of
the prophet that came out of Samaria. And all the
houses also of the high places that were in the cities of
Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to pro-
voke the Lord to anger, Josiah took away, and did
to them according to all the acts that he had done in
Beth-el. And he slew all the priests of the high places
that were there upon the altars, and burned men's bones
upon them, and returned to Jerusalem.
And the king commanded all the people, saying : —
" Keep the passover unto the Lord your God, as it is
written in the book of this covenant." Surely there
was not holden such a passover from the days of the
judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the
kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah ; but in the
eighteenth year of king Josiah, wherein this passover
was holden to the Lord in Jerusalem.
Moreover them that had familiar spirits, and the
wizards, and the teraphim, and the idols, and all the
abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and
in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might per-
form the words of the law which were written in the
book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the
Lord. And like unto him was there no king before
him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with
all his soul, and with all his might, according to all
the law of Moses ; neither after him arose there any
like him.
Notwithstanding the Lord turned not from the fierce-
ness of His great wrath, wherewith His anger was
kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations
that Manasseh had provoked Him withal. And the
Lord said: — ■" I will remove Judah also out of My
sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this
city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house
of which I said. My name shall be there."
Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he
did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles
of the kings of Judah? In his days Pharaoh-nechoh
king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to
xxiii. 30 — xxiv. 4] 11. KINGS 227
the river Euphrates : and king Josiah went against
him ; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen
him. And his servants carried him in a chariot dead
from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and
buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of
the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed
him, and made him king in his father's stead.
Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he
began to reign ; and he reigned three months in Jeru-
salem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the
daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. And he did that
which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to
all that his fathers had done. And Pharaoh-nechoh put
him in bands at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that
he might not reign in Jerusalem ; and put the land to
a tribute of an hundred talents of silver, and a talent
of gold. And Pharaoh-nechoh made Eliakim the son
of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and
turned his name to Jehoiakim, and took Jehoahaz
away : and he came to Egypt, and died there. And
Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh ; but
he taxed the land to give the money according to the
commandment of Pharaoh : he exacted the silver and
the gold of the people of the land, of every one accord-
ing to his taxation, to give it unto Pharaoh-nechoh.
Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he
began to reign ; and he reigned eleven years in Jeru-
salem. And his mother's name was Zebudah, the
daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah. And he did that which
was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that
his fathers had done. In his days Nebuchadnezzar king
of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant
three years : then he turned and rebelled against him.
And the Lord sent against him bands of the Chaldees,
and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites,
and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them
against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of
the Lord, which He spake by His servants the pro-
phets. Surely at the commandment of the Lord came
this upon Judah, to remove them out of His sight, for
the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did ;
and also for the innocent blood that he shed : for he
228 II. KINGS [xxiv. 5-17
filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the Lord
would not pardon.
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that
he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles
of the kings of Judah? So Jehoiakim slept with his
fathers : and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.
And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of
his land : for the king of Babylon had taken from the
river of Egypt unto the river Euphrates all that per-
tained to the king of Egypt.
Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to
reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And
his mother's name was Nehushta, the daughter of Elna-
than of Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in
the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father
had done.
At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king
of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city
was besieged. And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon
came against the city, and his servants did besiege it.
And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king
of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and
his princes, and his officers : and the king of Babylon
took him in the eighth year of his reign. And he car-
ried out thence all the treasures of the house of the
Lord, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut
in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king
of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord, as the
Lord had said. And he carried away all Jerusalem,
and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour,
even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and
smiths : none remained, save the poorest sort of the
people of the land. And he carried away Jehoachin to
Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives,
and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those
carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.
And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and
craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong
and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought
captive to Babylon.
And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his father's
brother king in his stead, and changed his name to
xxiv. 1 8 — XXV. ii] II. KINGS 229
Zedekiah. Zedekiah was twenty and one years old
when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years
in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal,
the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. And he did that
which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to
all that Jehoiakim had done. For through the anger
of the Lord it came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah,
until He had cast them out from His presence, that
Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign,
in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all
his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and
they built forts against it round about. And the city
was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.
And on the ninth day of the fourth month the famine
was sore in the city, and there was no bread for the
people of the land. And the city was broken up, and
all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate
between two walls, which is by the king's garden; (now
the Chaldees were against the city round about :) and
the king went the way toward the plain. And the army
of the Chaldees pursued after the king, and overtook
him in the plains of Jericho : and all his army were
scattered from him. So they took the king, and brought
him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah ; and they
gave judgment upon him. And they slew the sons of
Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zede-
kiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried
him to Babylon.
And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the
month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebuchad-
nezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzar-adan, captain of
the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jeru-
salem : and he burnt the house of the Lord, and the
king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and
every great man's house burnt he with fire.
And all the army of the Chaldees, that were with the
captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem
round about. And the rest of the people that were left
in the city, and the fugitives that fell away to the king
of Babylon, with the residue of the multitude, did
230 11. KINGS [xxv. 12-23
Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard carry away.
But the captain of the guard left of the poor of the land
to be vinedressers and husbandmen.
And the pillars of brass that were in the house of the
Lord, and the bases, and the brasen sea that was in the
house of the Lord, did the Chaldees break in pieces,
and carried the brass of them to Babylon. And the
pots and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the spoons,
and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered,
took they away. And the firepans, qnd the basons ;
that which was of gold, in gold, and that which was of
silver, in silver, the captain of the guard took away.
The two pillars, the one sea, and the bases which Solo-
mon had made for the house of the Lord ; the brass of
all these vessels was without weight. The height of
the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and the chapiter upon
it was brass : and the height of the chapiter three cubits ;
and the wreathen work, and pomegranates upon the
chapiter round about, all of brass : and like unto these
had the second pillar with wreathen work.
And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief
priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three
keepers of the door : and out of the city he took an
officer that was set over the men of war, and five men
of them that were in the king's presence, which were
found in the city, and the principal scribe of the host,
which mustered the people of the land, and threescore
men of the people of the land that were found in the
city. And Nebuzar-adan captain of the guard took
them, and brought them to the king of Babylon to
Riblah : and the king of Babylon smote them, and slew
them at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was
carried away out of their land.
And as for the people that remained in the land of
Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left,
even over them he made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam,
the son of Shaphan, ruler. And when all the captains
of the armies, they and their men, heard that the king
of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, there came
to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Netha-
niah, and Johanan the son of Careah, and Seraiah the
son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the
XXV. 24-30] n. KINGS 231
son of a Maachathite, they and their men. And GedaHah
sware to them, and to their men, and said unto them : —
" Fear not to be the servants of the Chaldees : dvi^ell
in the land, and serve the king of Babylon ; and it shall
be well with you." But it came to pass in the seventh
month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of
Ehshama, of the seed royal, came, and ten men with
him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews
and the Chaldees that were with him at Mizpah. ^ And
all the people, both small and great, and the captains of
the armies, arose, and came to Egypt : for they were
afraid of the Chaldees.
And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of
the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth
month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month,
that Evil-merodach king of Babylon in the year that he
began to reign did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king
of Judah out of prison ; and he spake kindly to him, and
set his throne above the throne of the kings that were
with him in Babylon ; and changed his prison gar-
ments : and he did eat bread continually before him all
the days of his life. And his allowance was a continual
allowance given him of the king, a daily rate for every
day, all the days of his life.
LATER HISTORICAL BOOKS
I 2
THE FIRST BOOK OF THE
CHRONICLES
Adam, Sheth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalaleel, Jered, He-
noch, Methuselah, Lamech, Noah, Shem, Ham, and
Japheth.
The sons of Japheth ; Gomer, and Magog, and
Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras.
And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and
Togarmah, And the sons of Javan ; EUshah, and
Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim.
The sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, Put, and
Canaan. And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah,
and Sabta, and Raamah, and Sabtecha. And the sons
of Raamah ; Sheba, and Dedan. And Cush begat
Nimrod : he began to be mighty upon the earth. And
Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and
Naphtuhim, and Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (of whom
came the Philistines,) and Caphthorim. And Canaan
begat Zidon his firstborn, and Heth, the Jebusite also,
and the Amorite, and the Girgashite, and the Hivite,
and the Arkite, and the Sinite, and the Arvadite, and
the Zemarite, and the Hamathite.
The sons of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad,
and Lud, and Aram, and Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and
Meshech. And Arphaxad begat Shelah, and Shelah
begat Eber. And unto Eber were born two sons : the
name of the one was Peleg ; because in his days the
earth was divided : and his brother's name was Jok-
tan. And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and
Hazarmaveth, and Jerah, Hadoram also, and Uzal, and
Diklah, and Ebal, and Abimael, and Sheba, and Ophir,
and Havilah, and Jobab. All these were the sons of
Joktan.
Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah, Eber, Peleg, Reu, Serug,
Nahor, Terah, Abram ; the same is Abraham. The
sons of Abraham ; Isaac, and Ishmael.
235
236 . I. CHRONICLES [i. 29-50
These are their generations : the firstborn of Ish-
mael, Nebaioth ; then Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam,
Mishma, and Dumah, Massa, Hadad, and Tenia, Jetur,
Naphish, and Kedemah. There are the sons of Ish-
mael.
Now the sons of Keturah, Abraham's concubine : she
bare Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian,
and Ishbak, and Shuah. And the sons of Jokshan ;
Sheba, and Dedan. And the sons of Midian ; Ephah,
and Epher, and Henoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All
these are the sons of Keturah. And Abraham begat
Isaac. The sons of Isaac; Esau, and Israel.
The sons of Esau ; Eliphaz, Reuel, and Jeush, and
Jaalam, and Korah. The sons of Eliphaz; Teman,
and Omar, Zephi, and Gatam, Kenaz, and Timna, and
Amalek. The sons of Reuel; Nahath, Zerah, Sham-
mah, and Mizzah. And the sons of Seir; Lotan, and
Shobal, and Zibeon, and Anah, and Dishon, and Ezar,
and Dishan. And the sons of Lotan ; Hori, and Ho-
mam : and Timna was Lotan 's sister. The sons of
Shobal; Alian, and Manahath, and Ebal, Shephi, and
Onam. And the sons of Zibeon ; Aiah, and Anah. The
sons of Anah ; Dishon. And the sons of Dishon ; Am-
ram, and Eshban, and Ithran, and Cheran. The sons
of Ezer; Bilhan, and Zavan, and Jakan. The sons of
Dishan ; Uz, and Aran.
Now these are the kings that reigned in the land of
Edom before any king reigned over the children of
Israel ; Bela the son of Beor : and the name of his city
was Dinhabah. And when Bela was dead, Jobab the
son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his stead. And when
Jobab was dead, Husham of the land of the Temanites
reigned in his stead. And when Husham was dead,
Hadad the son of Bedad, which smote Midian in the
field of Moab, reigned in his stead : and the name of
his city was Avith. And when Hadad was dead, Sam-
lah of Masrekah reigned in his stead. And when Sam-
lah was dead, Shaul of Rehoboth by the river reigned in
his stead. And when Shaul was dead, Baal-hanan the
son of Achbor reigned in his stead. And when Baal-
hanan was dead, Hadad reigned in his stead : and the
name of his city was Pai ; and his wife's name was
i. 51— ii. 22] L CHRONICLES 237
Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of
Mezahab. Hadad died also. And the dukes of Edom
were; duke Timnah, duke AUah, duke Jetheth, duke
Ahohbamah, duke Elah, duke Pinon, duke Kenaz, duke
Teman, duke Mibzar, duke Magdiel, duke Iram. These
are the dukes of Edom.
These are the sons of Israel; Reuben, Shneon, Levi,
and Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun, Dan, Joseph, and
Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
The sons of Judah ; Er, and Onan, and Shelah :
which three were born unto him of the daughter of
Shua the Canaanitess. And Er, the firstborn of Judah,
was evil in the sight of the Lord ; and He slew him.
And Tamar his daughter in law bare him Pharez and
Zerah. All the sons of Judah were five.
The sons of Pharez ; Hezron, and Hamul. And the
sons of Zerah; Zimri, and Ethan, and Heman, and Cal-
col, and Dara : five of them in all. And the sons of
Carmi ; Achar, the troubler of Israel, who transgressed
in the thing devoted. And the sons of Ethan; Aza-
riah. The sons also of Hezron, that were born unto
him; Jerahmeel, and Ram, and Chelubai. And Ram
begat Amminadab ; and Amminadab begat Nahshon,
prince of the children of Judah; and Nahshon begat
Salma, and Salma begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed,
and Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat his firstborn
Eliab, and Abinadab the second, and Shimea the third,
Nethaneel the fourth, Raddai the fifth, Ozem the sixth,
David the seventh : whose sisters were Zeruiah, and
Abigail. And the sons of Zeruiah; Abishai, and Joab,
and Asahel, three. And Abigail bare Amasa : and the
father of Amasa was Jether the Ishmeelite.
And Caleb the son of Hezron begat children of
Azubah his wife, and of Jerioth : her sons are these;
Jesher, and Shobab, and Ardon. And when Azubah was
dead, Caleb took unto him Ephrath, which bare him
Hur. And Hur begat Uri, and Uri begat Bezaleel. And
afterward Hezron went in to the daughter of Machir the
father of Gilead, whom he married when he was three-
score years old ; and she bare him Segub. And Segub
begat Jair, who had three and twenty cities in the land
238 I. CHRONICLES [ii. 23-46
of Gilead. And he took Geshur, and Aram, with the
towns of Jair, from them, with Kenath, and the towns
thereof, even threescore cities. All these belonged to
the sons of Machir the father of Gilead. And after that
Hezron was dead in Caleb-ephratah, then Abiah Hez-
ron's wife bare him Ashur the father of Tekoa.
And the sons of Jerahmeel the firstborn of Hezron
were. Ram the firstborn, and Bunah, and Oren, and
Ozem, and Ahijah. Jerahmeel had also another wife,
whose name was Atarah ; she was the mother of Onam.
And the sons of Ram the firstborn of Jerahmeel were,
Maaz, and Jamin, and Eker. And the sons of Onam
were, Shammai, and Jada. And the sons of Shammai ;
Nadab, and Abishur. And the name of the wife of
Abishur was Abihail, and she bare him Ahban, and
Molid. And the sons of Nadab; Seled, and Appaim :
but Seled died without children. And the sons of
Appaim; Ishi. And the sons of Ishi ; Sheshan. And
the children of Sheshan ; Ahlai. And the sons of Jada
the brother of Shammai ; Jether, and Jonathan : and
Jether died without children. And the sons of Jona-
than ; Peleth, and Zaza. These were the sons of
Jerahmeel.
Now Sheshan had no sons, but daug-hters. And She-
shan had a servant, an Egyptian, whose name was
Jarha. And Sheshan gave his daughter to Jarha his
servant to wife ; and she bare him Attai. And Attai
begat Nathan, and Nathan begat Zabad, and Zabad
begat Ephlal, and Ephlal begat Obed, and Obed begat
Jehu, and Jehu begat Azariah, and Azariah begat
Helez, and Helez begat Eleasah, and Eleasah begat
Sisamai, and Sisamai begat Shallum, and Shallum begat
Jekamiah, and Jekamiah begat Elishama.
Now the sons of Caleb the brother of Jerahmeel were,
Mesha his firstborn, which was the father of Ziph ; and
the sons of Mareshah the father of Hebron. And the
sons of Hebron ; Korah, and Tappuah, and Rekem, and
Shema. And Shema begat Raham, the father of Jor-
koam : and Rekem begat Shammai. And the son of
Shammai was Maon : and Maon was the father of
Beth-zur. And Ephah, Caleb's concubine, bare Haran,
and Moza, and Gazez : and Haran begat Gazez. And
ii. 47_iii. 13] I. CHRONICLES 239
the sons of Jahdai ; Reg-em, and Jotham, and Gesham,
and Pelet, and Ephah, and Shaaph. Maachah, Caleb's
concubine, bare Sheber, and Tirhanah. She bare also
Shaaph the father of Madmannah, Sheva the father of
Machbenah, and the father of Gibea : and the daughter
of Caleb was Achsa.
These were the sons of Caleb the son of Hur, the first-
born of Ephratah ; Shobal the father of Kirjath-jearim,
Salma the father of Beth-lehem, Hareph the father of
Beth-gader. And Shobal the father of Kirjath-jearim
had sons ; Haroeh, and half of the Manahethites. And
the families of Kirjath-jearim ; the Ithrites, and the
Puhites, and the Shumathites, and the Mishraites ; of
them came the Zareathites, and the Eshtaulites. The
sons of Salma; Beth-lehem, and the Netophathites,
Ataroth, the house of Joab, and half of the Manahe-
thites, the Zorites. And the families of the scribes
which dwelt at Jabez ; the Tirathites, the Shimeathites,
and Suchathites. These are the Kenites that came of
Hemath, the father of the house of Rechab.
Now these were the sons of David, which were born
unto him in Hebron ; the firstborn Ammon, of Ahinoam
the Jezreelitess ; the second Daniel, of Abigail the
Carmelltess : the third, Absalom the son of Maachah
the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur : the fourth,
Adonijah the son of Haggith : the fifth, Shephatiah of
Abital : the sixth, Ithream by Eglah his wife. These
six were born unto him in Hebron ; and there he reigned
seven years and six months : and in Jerusalem he
reigned thirty and three years. And these were born
unto him in Jerusalem ; Shimea, and Shobab, and Na-
than, and Solomon, four, of Bath-shua the daughter of
Ammiel : Ibhar also, and Elishama, and Eliphelet, and
Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia, and Elishama, and
Eliada, and Eliphelet, nine. These were all the sons of
David, beside the sons of the concubines, and Tamar
their sister.
And Solomon's son was Rehoboam, Abia his son,
Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son, Joram his son, Aha-
ziah his son, Joash his son, Amaziah his son, Azariah
his son, Jotham his son, Ahaz his son, Hezekiah his
240 I. CHRONICLES [iii. 14— iv. 10
son, Manasseh his son, Amon his son, Josiah his son.
And the sons of Josiah were, the firstborn Johanan, the
second Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah, the fourth Shal-
lum. And the sons of Jehoiakim; Jeconiah his son,
Zedekiah his son.
And the sons of Jeconiah; Assir, Salathiel his son,
Malchiram also, and Pedaiah, and Shenazar, Jecamiah,
Hoshama, and Nedabiah. And the sons of Pedaiah
were, Zerubbabel, and Shimei : and the sons of Zerub-
babel; Meshullam, and Hananiah, and Shelomith their
sister : and Hashubah, and Ohel, and Berechiah, and
Hasadiah, Jushab-hesed, five. And the sons of Hana-
niah ; Pelatiah, and Jesaiah : the sons of Rephaiah, the
sons of Arnan, the sons of Obadiah, the sons of She-
chaniah. And the sons of Shechaniah ; Shemaiah : and
the sons of Shemaiah ; Hattush, and Igeal, and Bariah,
and Neariah, and Shaphat, six. And the sons of
Neariah ; Elioenai, and Hezekiah, and Azrikam, three.
And the sons of Elioenai were, Hodaiah, and Eliashib,
and Pelaiah, and Akkub, and Johanan, and Dalaiah,
and Anani, seven.
The sons of Judah ; Pharez, Hezron, and Carmi, and
Hur, and Shobal. And Reaiah the son of Shobal begat
Jahath ; and Jahath begat Ahumai, and Lahad. These
are the families of the Zorathites. And these were of
the father of Etam ; Jezreel, and Ishma, and Idbash :
and the name of their sister was Hazelelponi : and
Penuel the father of Gedor, and Ezer the father of Hu-
shah. These are the sons of Hur, the firstborn of
Ephratah, the father of Beth-lehem. And Ashur the
father of Tekoa had two wives, Helah and Naarah.
And Naarah bare him Ahuzam, and Hepher, and Te-
meni, and Haahashtari. These were the sons of
Naarah. And the sons of Helah were, Zereth, and
Jezoar, and Ethnan. And Coz begat Anub, and Zobe-
bah, and the families of Aharhel the son of Harum.
And Jabez was more honourable than his brethren :
and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, " Be-
cause I bare him with sorrow." And Jabez called on
the God of Israel, saying, " Oh that Thou wouldest
bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that Thine
iv. 11-28] I. CHRONICLES 241
hand might be with me, and that Thou wouldest keep
me from evil, that it may not grieve me!" And God
granted him that which he requested.
And Chelub the brother of Shuah begat Mehir, which
was the father of Eshton. And Eshton begat Beth-
rapha, and Paseah, and Tehinnah the father of Irna-
hash. These are the men of Rechah. And the sons
of Kenaz ; Othniel, and Seraiah : and the sons of Oth-
niel ; Hathath. And Meonothai begat Ophrah : and
Seraiah begat Joab, the father of the valley of Chara-
shim ; for they were craftsmen. And the sons of Caleb
the son of Jephunneh ; Iru, Elah, and Naam : and the
sons of Elah, even Kenaz. And the sons of Jehaleleel ;
Ziph, and Ziphah, Tiria, and Asareel. And the sons
of Ezra were, Jether, and Mered, and Epher, and Jalon :
and she bare Miriam, and Shammai, and Ishbah the
father of Eshtemoa. And his wife Jehudijah bare Jered
the father of Gedor, and Heber the father of Socho, and
Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah. And these are the sons
of Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh, which Mered took.
And the sons of his wife Hodiah the sister of Naham,
the father of Keilah the Garmite, and Eshtemoa the
Maachathite. And the sons of Shimon were, Amnon,
and Rinnah, Ben-hanan, and Tilon. And the sons of
Ishi were, Zoheth, and Ben-zoheth.
The sons of Shelah the son of Judah were, Er the
father of Lecah, and Laadah the father of Mareshah,
and the families of the house of them that wrought fine
linen, of the house of Ashbea, and Jokim, and the men
of Chozeba, and Joash, and Saraph, who had the
dominion in Moab, and Jashubi-lehem. And these are
ancient things. These were the potters, and those that
dwelt among plants and hedges : there they dwelt with
the king for his work.
The sons of Simeon were, Nemuel, and Jamin, Jarib,
Zerah, and Shaul : Shallum his son, Mibsam his son,
Mishma his son. And the sons of Mishma ; Hamuel
his son, Zacchur his son, Shimei his son. And Shimei
had sixteen sons and six daughters ; but his brethren
had not many children, neither did all their family
multiply, like to the children of Judah. And they dwelt
242 I. CHRONICLES [iv. 29— v. 5
at Beer-sheba, and Moladah, and Hazar-shual, and at
Bilhah, and at Ezem, and at Tolad, and at Bethuel, and
at Hormah, and at Ziklag-, and at Beth-marcaboth, and
Hazar-susim, and at Beth-birei, and at Shaaraim.
These were their cities unto the reign of David. And
their villages were, Etam, and Ain, Rimmon, and
Tochen, and Ashan, five cities : and all their villages
that were round about the same cities, unto Baal. These
were their habitations, and their genealogy.
And Meshobab, and Jamlech, and Joshah the son of
Amaziah, and Joel, and Jehu the son of Josibiah, the
son of Seraiah, the son of Asiel, and Elioenai, and
Jaakobah, and Jeshohaiah, and Asaiah, and Adiel, and
Jesimiel, and Benaiah, and Ziza the son of Shiphi, the
son of Allon, the son of Jedaiah, the son of Shimri, the
son of Shemaiah ; these mentioned by their names were
princes in their families : and the house of their fathers
increased greatly. And they went to the entrance of
Gedor, even unto the east side of the valley, to seek
pasture for their flocks. And they found fat pasture
and good, and the land was wide, and quiet, and peace-
able ; for they of Ham had dwelt there of old. And
these written by name came in the days of Hezekiah
king of Judah, and smote their tents, and the habita-
tions that were found there, and destroyed them utterly
unto this day, and dwelt in their rooms : because there
was pasture there for their flocks. And some of them,
even of the sons of Simeon, five hundred men, went to
mount Seir, having for their captains Pelatiah, and
Neariah, and Rephaiah, and Uzziel, the sons of Ishi.
And they smote the rest of the Amalekites that were
escaped, and dwelt there unto this day.
Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, (for
he was the firstborn ; but, forasmuch as he defiled his
father's bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of
Joseph the son of Israel : and the genealogy is not to
be reckoned after the birthright. For Judah prevailed
above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler;
but the birthright was Joseph's :) the sons, I say, of
Reuben the firstborn of Israel were, Hanoch, and Pallu,
Hezron, and Carmi. The sons of Joel; Shemaiah his
son, Gog his son, Shimei his son, Micah his son, Reaia
V. 6-21] I. CHRONICLES 243
his son, Baal his son, Beerah his son, whom Tilgath-
pilneser king of Assyria carried away captive : he was
prince of the Reubenites.
And his brethren by their families, when the genealog-y
of their generations was reckoned, were the chief, Jeiel,
and Zechariah, and Bela the son of Azaz, the son of
Shema, the son of Joel, who dwelt in Aroer, even unto
Nebo and Baal-meon : and eastward he inhabited unto
the entering in of the wilderness from the river
Euphrates : because their cattle were multiplied in the
land of Gilead. And in the days of Saul they made war
with the Hagarites, who fell by their hand : and they
dwelt in their tents throughout all the east land of
Gilead.
And the children of Gad dwelt over against them, in
the land of Bashan unto Salcah : Joel the chief, and Sha-
pham the next, and Jaanai, and Shaphat in Bashan.
And their brethren of the house of their fathers were,
Michael, and Meshullam, and Sheba, and Jorai, and
Jachan, and Zia, and Heber, seven. These are the
children of Abihail the son of Huri, the son of Jaroah,
the son of Gilead, the son of Michael, the son of Jeshi-
shai, the son of Jahdo, the son of Buz; Ahi the son of
Abdiel, the son of Guni, chief of the house of their
fathers. And they dwelt in Gilead in Bashan, and in
her towns, and in all the suburbs of Sharon, upon their
borders. All these were reckoned by genealogies in
the days of Jotham king of Judah, and in the days of
Jeroboam king of Israel.
The sons of Reuben, and the Gadites, and half the
tribe of Manasseh, of valiant men, men able to bear
buckler and sword, and to shoot with bow, and skilful
in war, were four and forty thousand seven hundred and
threescore that went out to the war. And they made
war with the Hagarites, with Jetur, and Nephish, and
Nodab. And they were helped against them, and the
Hagarites were delivered into their hand, and all that
were with them : for they cried to God in the battle, and
He was intreated of them ; because they put their trust
in Him. And they took away their cattle ; of their
camels fifty thousand, and of sheep two hundred and
fifty thousand, and of asses two thousand, and of men
244 I- CHRONICLES [v. 22— vi. 17
an hundred thousand. For there fell down many slain,
because the war was of God. And they dwelt in their
steads until the captivity.
And the children of the half tribe of Manasseh dwelt
in the land : they increased from Bashan unto Baal-
hermon and Senir, and unto mount Hermon. And
these were the heads of the house of their fathers, even
Epher, and Ishi, and Eliel, and Azriel, and Jeremiah,
and Hodaviah, and Jahdiel, mighty men of valour,
famous men, and heads of the house of their fathers.
And they transgressed against the God of their fathers,
and went a whoring after the gods of the people of the
land, whom God destroyed before them. And the God
of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul the king of Assyria,
and the spirit of Tilgath-pilneser king of Assyria, and
he carried them away, even the Reubenites, and the
Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and brought
them unto Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to the
river Gozan, unto this day.
The sons of Levi; Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
And the sons of Kohath; Amram, Izhar, and Hebron,
and Uzziel. And the children of Amram; Aaron, and
Moses, and Miriam. The sons also of Aaron ; Nadab
and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.
Eleazar begat Phinehas, Phinehas begat Abishua,
and Abishua begat Bukki, and Bukki begat Uzzi, and
Uzzi begat Zerahiah, and Zerahiah begat Meraioth,
Meraioth begat Amariah, and Amariah begat Ahitub,
and Ahitub begat Zadok, and Zadok begat Ahimaaz,
and Ahimaaz begat Azariah, and Azariah begat Joha-
nan, and Johanan begat Azariah, (he it is that executed
the priest's office in the temple that Solomon built in
Jerusalem :) and Azariah begat Amariah, and Amariah
begat Ahitub, and Ahitub begat Zadok, and Zadok
begat Shallum, and Shallum begat Hilkiah, and Hilkiah
begat Azariah, and Azariah begat Seraiah, and Seraiah
begat Jehozadak, and Jehozadak went into captivity,
when the Lord carried away Judah and Jerusalem by
the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.
The sons of Levi ; Gershom, Kohath, and Merari.
And these be the names of the sons of Gershom ; Libni,
vi. 18-42] I. CHRONICLES 245
and Shimei. And the sons of Kohath were, Amram,
and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel. The sons of Me-
rari ; Mahh, and Mushi.
And these are the famihes of the Levites according
to their fathers :
Of Gershom ; Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zim-
mah his son, Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son,
Jeaterai his son.
The sons of Kohath ; Amminadab his son, Korah his
son, Assir his son, Elkanah his son, and Ebiasaph his
son, and Assir his son, Tahath his son, Uriel his son,
Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son. And the sons of
Elkanah ; Amasai, and Ahimoth. As for Elkanah :
the sons of Elkanah ; Zophai his son, and Nahath his
son, Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, Elkanah his son.
And the sons of Samuel ; the firstborn Vashni, and
Abiah.
The sons of Merari ; Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his
son, Uzza his son, Shimea his son, Haggiah his son,
Asaiah his son.
And these are they whom David set over the service
of song- in the house of the Lord, after that the ark had
rest. And they ministered before the dwelling- place of
the tabernacle of the congregation with singing, until
Solomon had built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem :
and then they waited on their office according to their
order. And these are they that waited, with their
children :
Of the sons of the Kohathites : Heman a singer, the
son of Joel, the son of Shemuel, the son of Elkanah, the
son of Jeroham, the son of Eliel, the son of Toah, the
son of Zuph, the son of Elkanah, the son of Mahath,
the son of Amasai, the son of Elkanah, the son of Joel,
the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah, the son of
Tahath, the son of Assir, the son of Ebiasaph, the son
of Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son
of Levi, the son of Israel.
And his brother Asaph, who stood on his right hand,
even Asaph the son of Berachiah, the son of Shimea,
the son of Michael, the son of Baaseiah, the son of Mal-
chiah, the son of Ethni, the son of Zerah, the son of
Adaiah, the son of Ethan, the son of Zimmah, the son
246 I. CHRONICLES [vi. 43-62
of Shimei, the son of Jahath, the son of Gershom, the
son of Levi.
And their brethren the sons of Merari stood on the
left hand : Ethan the son of Kishi, the son of Abdi, the
son of Malluch, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Ama-
ziah, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Amzi, the son of
Bani, the son of Shamer, the son of Mahli, the son of
Mushi, the son of Merari, the son of Levi.
Their brethren also the Levites were appointed unto
all manner of service of the tabernacle of the house of
God. But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar
of the burnt offering, and on the altar of incense,
and were appointed for all the work of the place
most holy, and to make an atonement for Israel,
according- to all that Moses the servant of God had
commanded.
And these are the sons of Aaron; Eleazar his son,
Phinehas his son, Abishua his son, Bukki his son, Uzzi
his son, Zerahiah his son, Meraioth his son, Amariah
his son, Ahitub his son, Zadok his son, Ahimaaz his
son.
Now these are their dwelling places throughout their
castles in their coasts, of the sons of Aaron, of the
families of the Kohathites : for theirs was the lot. And
they gave them Hebron in the land of Judah, and the
suburbs thereof round about it. But the fields of the
city, and the villages thereof, they gave to Caleb the
son of Jephunneh. And to the sons of Aaron they
gave the cities of Judah, namely, Hebron, the city of
refuge, and Libnah with her suburbs, and Jattir, and
Eshtemoa, with their suburbs, and Hilen with her
suburbs, Debir with her suburbs, and Ashan with her
suburbs, and Beth-shemesh with her suburbs : and out
of the tribe of Benjamin ; Geba with her suburbs, and
Alemeth with her suburbs, and Anathoth with her
suburbs. All their cities throughout their families were
thirteen cities. And unto the sons of Kohath, which
were left of the family of that tribe, were cities given
out of the half tribe, namely, out of the half tribe of
Manasseh, by lot, ten cities. And to the sons of Ger-
shom throughout their families out of the tribe of Issa-
char, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe
vi. 63-80] I. CHRONICLES 247
of Naphtali, and out of the tribe of Manasseh in Bashan,
thirteen cities.
Unto the sons of Merari were given by lot, through-
out their families, out of the tribe of Reuben, and out
of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun,
twelve cities. And the children of Israel gave to the
Levites these cities with their suburbs. And they gave
by lot out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and
out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, and out of
the tribe of the children of Benjamin, these cities, which
are called by their names. And the residue of the
families of the sons of Kohath had cities of their coasts
out of the tribe of Ephraim. And they gave unto them,
of the cities of refuge, Shechem in mount Ephraim with
her suburbs; they gave also Gezer with her suburbs,
and Jokmeam with her suburbs, and Beth-horon with
her suburbs, and Aijalon with her suburbs, and Gath-
rimmon with her suburbs : and out of the half tribe of
Manasseh ; Aner with her suburbs, and Bileam with
her suburbs, for the family of the remnant of the sons
of Kohath.
Unto the sons of Gershom were given out of the
family of the half tribe of Manasseh, Golan in Bashan
with her suburbs, and Ashtaroth with her suburbs :
and out of the tribe of Issachar; Kedesh with her
suburbs, Daberath with her suburbs, and Ramoth with
her suburbs, and Anem with her suburbs : and out of
the tribe of Asher; Mashal with her suburbs, and
Abdon with her suburbs, and Hukok with her suburbs,
and Rehob with her suburbs : and out of the tribe
of Naphtali ; Kedesh in Galilee with her suburbs, and
Hammon with her suburbs, and Kirjathaim with her
suburbs.
Unto the rest of the children of Merari were given
out of the tribe of Zebulun, Rimmon with her suburbs.
Tabor with her suburbs : and on the other side Jordan
by Jericho, on the east side of Jordan, were given them
out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer in the wilderness with
her suburbs, and Jahzah with her suburbs, Kedemoth
also with her suburbs, and Mephaath with her suburbs :
and out of the tribe of Gad ; Ramoth in Gilead
with her suburbs, and Mahanaim with her suburbs,
248 I. CHRONICLES [vi. 81— vii. 14
and Heshbon with her suburbs, and Jazer with her
suburbs.
Now the sons of Issachar were, Tola, and Puah, Ja-
shub, and Shimrom, four. And the sons of Tola; Uzzi,
and Rephaiah, and Jeriel, and Jahmai, and Jibsam, and
Shemuel, heads of their father's house, to wit, of Tola :
they were valiant men of might in their g"enerations ;
whose number was in the days of David two and twenty
thousand and six hundred. And the sons of Uzzi ; Izra-
hiah : and the sons of Izrahiah ; Michael, and Obadiah,
and Joel, Ishiah, five : all of them chief men. And
with them, by their g-enerations, after the house of their
fathers, were bands of soldiers for war, six and thirty
thousand men : for they had many wives and sons.
And their brethren among- all the families of Issachar
were valiant men of might, reckoned in all by their
genealogies fourscore and seven thousand.
The sons of Benjamin ; Bela, and Becher, and Jediael,
three. And the sons of Bela; Ezbon, and Uzzi, and
Uzziel, and Jerimoth, and Iri, five ; heads of the house
of their fathers, mighty men of valour; and were
reckoned by their genealogies twenty and two thousand
and thirty and four. And the sons of Becher; Zemira,
and Joash, and Eliezer, and Elioenai, and Omri, and
Jerimoth, and Abiah, and Anathoth, and Alameth. All
these are the sons of Becher. And the number of them,
after their genealogy by their generations, heads of the
house of their fathers, mighty men of valour, was twenty
thousand and two hundred. The sons also of Jediael ;
Bilhan : and the sons of Bilhan ; Jeush, and Benjamin,
and Ehud, and Chenaanah, and Zethan, and Tarshish,
and Ahishahar. All these the sons of Jediael, by the
heads of their fathers, mighty men of valour, were seven-
teen thousand and two hundred soldiers, fit to go out
for war and battle. Shuppim also, and Huppim, the
children of Ir, and Hushim, the sons of Aher.
The sons of Naphtali ; Jahziel, and Guni, and Jezer,
and Shallum, the sons of Bilhah.
The sons of Manasseh ; Ashriel, whom she bare :
(but his concubine the Aramitess bare Machir the father
vii. 15-33] I. CHRONICLES 249
of Gilead : and Machir took to wife the sister of Hup-
pim and Shuppim, whose sister's name was Maachah ;)
and the name of the second was Zelophehad : and
Zelophehad had daughters. And Maachah the wife of
Machir bare a son, and she called his name Peresh ;
and the name of his brother was Sheresh ; and his sons
were Ulam and Rakem. And the sons of Ulam ;
Bedan. These were the sons of Gilead, the son of
Machir, the son of Manasseh. And his sister Hammo-
leketh bare Ishod, and Abiezer, and Mahalah. And the
sons of Shemidah were, Ahian, and Shechem, and Likhi,
and Aniam.
And the sons of Ephraim ; Shuthelah, and Bered his
son, and Tahath his son, and Eladah his son, and
Tahath his son, and Zabad his son, and Shuthelah his
son, and Ezer, and Elead, whom the men of Oath that
were born in that land slew, because they came down to
take away their cattle.
And Ephraim their father mourned many days, and
his brethren came to comfort him. And when he went
in to his wife, she conceived, and bare a son, and he
called his name Beriah, because it went evil with his
house. (And his daughter was Sherah, who built Beth-
horon the nether, and the upper, and Uzzen-sherah.)
And Rephah was his son, also Resheph, and Telah his
son, and Tahan his son, Laadan his son, Ammihud his
son, Elishama his son, Non his son, Jehoshua his son.
And their possessions and habitations were, Beth-el and
the towns thereof, and eastward Naaran, and westward
Gezer, with the towns thereof; Shechem also and the
towns thereof, unto Gaza and the towns thereof : and
by the borders of the children of Manasseh, Beth-shean
and her towns, Taanach and her towns, Megiddo and
her towns. Dor and her towns. In these dwelt the
children of Joseph the son of Israel.
The sons of Asher; Imnah, and Ishuah, and Ishuai,
and Beriah, and Serah their sister. And the sons of
Beriah; Heber, and Malchiel, who is the father of
Birzavith. And Heber begat Japhlet, and Shomer, and
Hotham, and Shua their sister. And the sons of Japh-
let; Pasach, and Bimhal, and Ashvath. These are the
250 I. CHRONICLES [vii. 34— viii. 22
children of Japhlet. And the sons of Shamer; Ahi, and
Rohgah, Jehubbah, and Aram. And the sons of his
brother Helem ; Zophah, and Imna, and Shelesh, and
Amal. The sons of Zophah; Suah, and Harnepher,
and Shual, and Beri, and Imrah, Bezer, and Hod, and
Shamma, and Shilshah, and Ithran, and Beera. And
the sons of Jether; Jephunneh, and Pispah, and Ara.
And the sons of Ulla ; Arab, and Haniel, and Rezia.
All these were the children of Asher, heads of the
fathers' houses, choice and mighty men of valour, chief
of the princes. And the number throughout the geneal-
ogy of them that were apt to the war and to battle was
twenty and six thousand men.
Now Benjamin begat Bela his firstborn, Ashbel the
second, and Aharah the third, Nohah the fourth, and
Kapha the fifth. And the sons of Bela were, Addar,
and Gera, and Abihud, and Abishua, and Naaman, and
Ahoah, and Gera, and Shephuphan, and Huram.
And these are the sons of Ehud : these are the heads
of the fathers of the inhabitants of Geba, and they re-
moved them to Manahath : and Naaman, and Ahiah,
and Gera, he removed them, and begat Uzza, and
Ahihud. And Shaharaim begat children in the country
of Moab, after he had sent them away ; Hushim and
Baara were his wives. And he begat of Hodesh his
wife, Jobab, and Zibia, and Mesha, and Malcham, and
Jeuz, and Shachia, and Mirma. These were his sons,
heads of the fathers. And of Hushim he begat Abitub,
and Elpaal.
The sons of Elpaal; Eber, and Misham, and Shamed,
who built Ono and Lod, with the towns thereof :
Beriah also, and Shema, who were heads of the fathers
of the inhabitants of Aijalon, who drove away the in-
habitants of Gath : and Ahio, Shashak, and Jeremoth,
and Zebadiah, and Arad, and Ader, and Michael, and
Ispah, and Joha, the sons of Beriah ; and Zebadiah,
and Meshullam, and Hezeki, and Heber, Ishmerai also,
and Jezliah, and Jobab, the sons of Elpaal; and Jakim,
and Zichri, and Zabdi, and Elienai, and Zilthai, and
Eliel, and Adaiah, and Beraiah, and Shimrath, the sons
of Shimhi ; and Ishpan, and Heber, and Eliel, and Ab-
vifi. 23— ix. 7] I. CHRONICLES 251
don, and Zichri, and Hanan, and Hananiah, and Elam,
and Antothijah, and Iphedeiah, and Penuel, the sons of
Shashak ; and Shamsherai, and Shehariah, and Athaliah,
and Jaresiah, and Eliah, and Zichri, the sons of Jeroham.
These were heads of the fathers, by their generations,
chief men. These dwelt in Jerusalem. And at Gibeon
dwelt the father of Gibeon; whose wife's name was
Maachah : and his firstborn son Abdon, and Zur, and
Kish, and Baal, and Nadab, and Gedor, and Ahio, and
Zacher. And Mikloth begat Shimeah. And these also
dwelt with their brethren in Jerusalem, over against
them.
And Ner begat Kish, and Kish begat Saul, and Saul
begat Jonathan, and Malchi-shua, and Abinadab, and
Esh-baal. And the son of Jonathan was Merib-baal ;
and Merib-baal begat Micah. And the sons of Micah
were, Pithon, and Melech, and Tarea, and Ahaz. And
Ahaz begat Jehoadah ; and Jehoadah begat Alemeth,
and Azmaveth, and Zimri ; and Zimri begat Moza, and
Moza begat Binea : Kapha was his son, Eleasah his
son, Azel his son : and Azel had six sons, whose names
are these, Azrikam, Bocheru, and Ishmael, and Shea-
riah, and Obadiah, and Hanan. All these were the sons
of Azel. And the sons of Eshek his brother were, Ulam
his firstborn, Jehush the second, and Eliphelet the third.
And the sons of Ulam were mighty men of valour,
archers, and had many sons, and sons' sons, an hundred
and fifty. All these are of the sons of Benjamin.
So all Israel were reckoned by genealogies; and, be-
hold, they were written in the book of the kings of
Israel and Judah, who were carried away to Babylon for
their transgression.
Now the first inhabitants that dwelt in their posses-
sions in their cities were, the Israelites, the priests,
Levites, and the Nethinim. And in Jerusalem dwelt of
the children of Judah, and of the children of Benjamin,
and of the children of Ephraim, and Manasseh ; Uthai
the son of Ammihud, the son of Omri, the son of Imri,
the son of Bani, of the children of Pharez the son of
Judah. And of the Shilonites ; Asaiah the firstborn,
and his sons. And of the sons of Zerah ; Jeuel, and
their brethren, six hundred and ninety. And of the sons
252 I. CHRONICLES [ix. 8-22
of Benjamin; Sallu the son of Meshullam, the son of
Hodaviah, the son of Hasenuah, and Ibneiah the son
of Jeroham, and Elah the son of Uzzi, the son of Michri,
and Meshullam the son of Shephathiah, the son of
Reuel, the son of Ibnijah; and their brethren, according-
to their generations, nine hundred and fifty and six. All
these men were chief of the fathers in the house of their
fathers.
And of the priests ; Jedaiah, and Jehoiarib, and
Jachin, and Azariah the son of Hilkiah, the son of Me-
shullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son
of Ahitub, the ruler of the house of God ; and Adaiah
the son of Jeroham, the son of Pashur, the son of Mal-
chijah, and Maasiai the son of Adiel, the son of Jah-
zerah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Meshillemith,
the son of Immer; and their brethren, heads of the
house of their fathers, a thousand and seven hundred
and threescore ; very able men for the work of the
service of the house of God.
And of the Levites ; Shemaiah the son of Hasshub,
the son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, of the sons
of Merari ; and Bakbakkar, Heresh, and Galal, and
Mattaniah the son of Micah, the son of Zichri, the son
of Asaph ; and Obadiah the son of Shemaiah, the son
of Galal, the son of Jeduthun, and Berechiah the son of
Asa, the son of Elkanah, that dwelt in the villages of
the Netophathites.
And the porters were, Shallum, and Akkub, and Tal-
mon, and Ahiman, and their brethren : Shallum was
the chief; who hitherto waited in the king's g^ate east-
ward : they were porters in the companies of the children
of Levi. And Shallum the son of Kore, the son of Ebia-
saph, the son of Korah, and his brethren, of the house
of his father, the Korahites, were over the work of the
service, keepers of the g^ates of the tabernacle : and
their fathers, being- over the host of the Lord, were
keepers of the entry. And Phinehas the son of Eleazar
was the ruler over them in time past, and the Lord was
with him. And Zechariah the son of Meshelemiah was
porter of the door of the tabernacle of the cong-rega-
tion. All these which were chosen to be porters in the
gates were two hundred and twelve. These were
ix. 23-42] I. CHRONICLES 253
reckoned by their genealogy in their villages, whom
David and Samuel the seer did ordain in their set office.
So they and their children had the oversight of the gates
of the house of the Lord, namely, the house of the taber-
nacle, by wards. In four quarters were the porters, to-
ward the east, west, north, and south. And their
brethren, which were in their villages, were to come
after seven days from time to time with them.
For these Levites, the four chief porters, were in their
set office, and were over the chambers and treasuries of
the house of God. And they lodged round about the
house of God, because the charge was upon them, and
the opening thereof every morning pertained to them.
And certain of them had the charge of the ministering
vessels, that they should bring them in and out by
tale. Some of them also were appointed to oversee the
vessels, and all the instruments of the sanctuary, and
the fine flour, and the wine, and the oil, and the frankin-
cense, and the spices. And some of the sons of the
priests made the ointment of the spices. And Matti-
thiah, one of the Levites, who was the firstborn of Shal-
lum the Korahite, had the set office over the things that
were made in the pans. And other of their brethren,
of the sons of the Kohathites, were over the shewbread,
to prepare it every sabbath. And these are the singers,
chief of the fathers of the Levites, who remaining in the
chambers were free : for they were employed in that
work day and night. These chief fathers of the Levites
were chief throughout their generations ; these dwelt at
Jerusalem.
And in Gibeon dwelt the father of Gibeon, Jehiel,
whose wife's name was Maachah : and his firstborn son
Abdon, then Zur, and Kish, and Baal, and Ner, and
Nadab, and Gedor, and Ahio, and Zechariah, and Mik-
loth. And Mikloth begat Shimeam. And they also
dwelt with their brethren at Jerusalem, over against
their brethren. And Ner begat Kish ; and Kish begat
Saul ; and Saul begat Jonathan, and Malchi-shua, and
Abinadab, and Esh-baal. And the son of Jonathan was
]\'Ierib-baal : and Merib-baal begat Micah. And the sons
of Micah were, Pithon, and Melech, and Tahrea, and
Ahaz. And Ahaz begat Jarah ; and Jarah begat Alemeth,
254 I. CHRONICLES [ix. 43— x. 13
and Azmaveth, and Zimri ; and Zimri begat Moza ; and
Moza begat Binea; and Rephaiah his son, Eleasah his
son, Azel his son. And Azel had six sons, whose names
are these, Azrikam, Bocheru, and Ishmael, and Shea-
riah, and Obadiah, and Hanan : these were the sons of
Azel.
Now the Philistines fought against Israel; and the
men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell
down slain in mount Gilboa. And the Philistines fol-
lowed hard after Saul, and after his sons ; and the
Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchi-
shua, the sons of Saul. And the battle went sore
against Saul, and the archers hit him, and he was
wounded of the archers. Then said Saul to his armour-
bearer : — "Draw thy sword, and thrust me through
therewith ; lest these uncircumcised come and abuse
me." But his armourbearer would not; for he was
sore afraid. So Saul took a sword, and fell upon it.
And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he
fell likewise on the sword, and died.
So Saul died, and his three sons, and all his house died
together. And when all the men of Israel that were in
the valley saw that they fled, and that Saul and his
sons were dead, then they forsook their cities, and fled :
and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. And it
came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came
to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his sons
fallen in mount Gilboa. And when they had stripped
him, they took his head, and his armour, and sent into
the land of the Philistines round about, to carry tidings
unto their idols, and to the people. And they put his
armour in the house of their gods, and fastened his
head in the temple of Dagon.
And when all Jabesh-gilead heard all that the Philis-
tines had done to Saul, they arose, all the valiant men,
and took away the body of Saul, and the bodies of
his sons, and brought them to Jabesh, and buried
their bones under the oak in Jabesh, and fasted seven
days.
So Saul died for his transgression which he com-
mitted against the Lord, even against the word of the
X. 14— xi. 14] I. CHRONICLES 255
Lord, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel
of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it ; and
enquired not of the Lord : therefore He slew him, and
turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse.
Then all Israel gathered themselves to David unto
Hebron, saying: — " Behold, we are thy bone and thy
flesh. And moreover in time past, even when Saul was
king, thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in
Israel : and the Lord thy God said unto thee, Thou
shalt feed My people Israel, and thou shalt be ruler over
My people Israel." Therefore came all the elders of
Israel to the king to Hebron ; and David made a cove-
nant with them in Hebron before the Lord ; and they
anointed David king over Israel, according to the word
of the Lord by Samuel.
And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, which is
Jebus ; where the Jebusites were, the inhabitants of the
land. And the inhabitants of Jebus said to David : —
"Thou shalt not come hither." Nevertheless David
took the castle of Zion, which is the city of David. And
David said: — "Whosoever smiteth the Jebusites first
shall be chief and captain. " So Joab the son of Zeruiah
went first up, and was chief. And David dwelt in the
castle ; therefore they called it the city of David. And
he built the city round about, even from Millo round
about : and Joab repaired the rest of the city. So
David waxed greater and greater : for the Lord of hosts
was with him.
These also are the chief of the mighty men whom
David had, who strengthened themselves with him in
his kingdom, and with all Israel, to make him king,
according to the word of the Lord concerning Israel.
And this is the number of the mighty men whom David
had ; Jashobeam, an Hachmonite, the chief of the cap-
tains : he lifted up his spear against three hundred slain
by him at one time. And after him was Eleazar the
son of Dodo, the Ahohite, who was one of the three
mighties. He was with David at Pas-dammim, and
there the Philistines were gathered together to battle,
where was a parcel of ground full of barley ; and the
people fled from before the Philistines. And they set
themselves in the midst of that parcel, and delivered it,
256 I. CHRONICLES [xi. 15-30
and slew the Philistines ; and the Lord saved them by a
great deHverance.
Now three of the thirty captains went down to the
rock to David, into the cave of Adullam ; and the host
of the Phihstines encamped in the valley of Rephaim.
And David was then in the hold, and the Philistines'
garrison was then at Beth-lehem. And David longed,
and said :- — " Oh that one would give me drink of the
water of the well of Beth-lehem, that is at the gate!"
And the three brake through the host of the Philistines,
and drew water out of the well of Beth-lehem, that was
by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David : but
David would not drink of it, but poured it out to the
Lord, and said : — " My God forbid it me, that I should
do this thing : shall I drink the blood of these men that
have put their lives in jeopardy? for with the jeopardy
of their lives they brought it." Therefore he would not
drink it. These things did these three mightiest.
And Abishai the brother of Joab, he was chief of the
three : for lifting up his spear against three hundred,
he slew them, and had a name among the three. Of
the three, he was more honourable than the two; for he
was their captain : howbeit he attained not to the first
three.
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant
man of Kabzeel, who had done many acts ; he slew the
two sons of Ariel of Moab : also he went down and slew
a lion in a pit in a snowy day. And he slew an Egyptian,
a man of great stature, five cubits high ; and in the
Egyptian's hand was a spear like a weaver's beam;
and he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the
spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and slew him with his
own spear. These things did Benaiah the son of Je-
hoiada, and had a name among the three mighties.
Behold, he was honourable among the thirty, but at-
tained not to the first three : and David set him over
his guard.
Also the valiant men of the armies were, Asahel the
brother of Joab, Elhanan the son of Dodo of Beth-
lehem, Shammoth the Harorite, Helez the Pelonite, Ira
the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abi-ezer the Antothite,
Sibbecai the Hushathite, Ilai the Ahohite, Maharai the
xi. 31— xii. 8] I. CHRONICLES 257
Netophathite, Heled the son of Baanah the Netopha-
thite, Ithai the son of Ribai of Gibeah, that pertained
to the children of Benjamin, Benaiah the Pirathonite,
Hurai of the brooks of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite,
Azmaveth the Baharumite, EHahba the Shaalbonite, the
sons of Hashem the Gizonite, Jonathan the son of Shage
the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sacar the Hararite,
Eliphal the son of Ur, Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah
the Pelonite, Hezro the CarmeHte, Naarai the son of
Ezbai, Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the son of
Hagg-eri, Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Berothite,
the armourbearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah, Ira the
Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, Uriah the Hittite, Zabad the
son of Ahlai, Adina the son of Shiza the Reubenite, a
captain of the Reubenites, and thirty with him, Hanan
the son of Maachah, and Joshaphat the Mithnite, Uzzia
the Ashterathite, Shama and Jehiel the sons of Hothan
the Aroerite, Jediael the son of Shimri, and Joha his
brother, the Tizite, Eliel the Mahavite, and Jeribai, and
Joshaviah, the sons of Elnaam, and Ithmah the
Moabite, Eliel, and Obed, and Jasiel the Mesobaite.
Now these are they that came to David to Ziklag-,
while he yet kept himself close because of Saul the son
of Kish : and they were among- the mighty men, helpers
of the war. They were armed with bows, and could
use both the right hand and the left in hurling stones
and shooting arrows out of a bow, even of Saul's
brethren of Benjamin. The chief was Ahiezer, then
Joash, the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite ; and Jeziel,
and Relet, the sons of Azmaveth ; and Berachah, and
Jehu the Antothite, and Ismaiah the Gibeonite, a mighty
man among the thirty, and over the thirty ; and Jere-
miah, and Jahaziel, and Johanan, and Josabad the
Gederathite, Eluzai, and Jerimoth, and Bealiah, and
Shemariah, and Shephatiah the Haruphite, Elkanah,
and Jesiah, and Azareel, and Joezer, and Jashobeam,
the Korhites, and Joelah, and Zebadiah, the sons of
Jeroham of Gedor.
And of the Gadites there separated themselves unto
David into the hold to the wilderness men of might, and
men of war fit for the battle, that could handle shield
and buckler, whose faces were like the faces of lions,
VOL. II. K
258 I. CHRONICLES [xii. 9-24
and were as swift as the roes upon the mountains ;
Ezer the first, Obadiah the second, EHab the third,
Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth, Attai the
sixth, EHel the seventh, Johanan the eighth, Elzabad
the ninth, Jeremiah the tenth, Machbanai the eleventh.
These were the sons of Gad, captains of the host : one
of the least was over an hundred, and the greatest over
a thousand. These are they that went over Jordan in
the first month, when it had overflown all its banks ;
and they put to flight all them of the valleys, both to-
ward the east, and toward the west.
And there came of the children of Benjamin and
Judah to the hold unto David. And David went out to
meet them, and answered and said unto them : — " If
ye be come peaceably unto me to help me, mine heart
shall be knit unto you : but if ye be come to betray me
to mine enemies, seeing there is no wrong in mine
hands, the God of our fathers look thereon, and rebuke
it." Then the spirit came upon Amasai, who was chief
of the captains, and he said : — " Thine are we, David,
and on thy side, thou son of Jesse : peace, peace be
unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers ; for thy God
helpeth thee." Then David received them, and made
them captains of the band.
And there fell some of Manasseh to David, when he
came with the Philistines against Saul to battle : but
they helped them not : for the lords of the Philistines
upon advisement sent him away, saying: — "He will
fall to his master Saul to the jeopardy of our heads."
As he went to Ziklag, there fell to him of Manasseh,
Adnah, and Jozabad, and Jediael, and Michael, and
Jozabad, and Elihu, and Zilthai, captains of the thou-
sands that were of Manasseh. And they helped David
against the band of the rovers : for they were all mighty
men of valour, and were captains in the host. For at
that time day by day there came to David to help him,
until it was a great host, like the host of God.
And these are the numbers of the bands that were
ready armed to the war, and came to David to Hebron,
to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the
word of the Lord. The children of Judah that bare
shield and spear were six thousand and eight hundred,
xii. 25— xiii. I] I. CHRONICLES 259
ready armed to the war. Of the children of Simeon,
mighty men of valour for the war, seven thousand and
one hundred. Of the children of Levi four thousand
and six hundred. And Jehoiada was the leader of the
Aaronites, and with him were three thousand and seven
hundred ; and Zadok, a young man mighty of valour,
and of his father's house twenty and two captains.
And of the children of Benjamin, the kindred of Saul,
three thousand : for hitherto the greatest part of them
had kept the ward of the house of Saul. And of the
children of Ephraim twenty thousand and eight
hundred, mighty men of valour, famous throughout the
house of their fathers. And of the half tribe of Manas-
seh eighteen thousand, which were expressed by name,
to come and make David king. And of the children
of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of
the times, to know what Israel ought to do; the heads
of them were two hundred ; and all their brethren were
at their commandment. Of Zebulun, such as went
forth to battle, expert in war, with all instruments of
war, fifty thousand, which could keep rank : they were
not of double heart. And of Naphtali a thousand cap-
tains, and with them with shield and spear thirty and
seven thousand. And of the Danites expert in war
twenty and eight thousand and six hundred. And of
Asher, such as went forth to battle, expert in war, forty
thousand. And on the other side of Jordan, of the
Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half tribe of
Manasseh, with all manner of instruments of war for
the battle, an hundred and twenty thousand.
All these men of war, that could keep rank, came
with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king
over all Israel : and all the rest also of Israel were of
one heart to make David king. And there they were
with David three days, eating and drinking : for their
brethren had prepared for them. Moreover they that
were nigh them, even unto Issachar and Zebulun and
Naphtali, brought bread on asses, and on camels, and
on mules, and on oxen, and meat, meal, cakes of figs,
and bunches of raisins, and wine, and oil, and oxen,
and sheep abundantly : for there was joy in Israel.
And David consulted with the captains of thousands
26o L CHRONICLES [xiii. 2— xiv. 2
and hundreds, and with every leader. And David said
unto all the cong-reg-ation of Israel : — " If it seem good
unto you, and that it be of the Lord our God, let us
send abroad unto our brethren every where, that are
left in all the land of Israel, and with them also to the
priests and Levites which are in their cities and suburbs,
that they may gather themselves unto us : and let us
bring- again the ark of our God to us : for we enquired
not at it in the days of Saul." And all the congrega-
tion said that they would do so : for the thing was right
in the eyes of all the people.
So David gathered all Israel together, from Shihor
of Egypt even unto the entering of Hamath, to bring
the ark of God from Kirjath-jearim. And David went
up, and all Israel, to Baalah, that is, to Kirjath-jearim,
which belonged to Judah, to bring up thence the ark of
God the Lord, that dwelleth between the cherubim,
whose name is called on it. And they carried the ark of
God in a new cart out of the house of Abinadab : and
Uzza and Ahio drave the cart. And David and all
Israel played before God with all their might, and with
singing, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with
timbrels, and with cymbals, and with trumpets.
And when they came unto the threshingfloor of
Chidon, Uzza put forth his hand to hold the ark; for
the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the Lord was
kindled against Uzza, and He smote him, because he
put his hand to the ark : and there he died before God.
And David was displeased, because the Lord had made
a breach upon Uzza : wherefore that place is called
Perez-uzza to this day. And David was afraid of God
that day, saying : — " How shall I bring the ark of God
home to me?" So David brought not the ark home
to himself to the city of David, but carried it aside into
the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. And the ark of
God .remained with the family of Obed-edom in his
house three months. And the Lord blessed the house
of Obel-edom, and all that he had.
Now Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David,
and timber of cedars, with masons and carpenters, to
build him an house. And David perceived that the
Lord had confirmed him king over Israel, for his king-
xiv. 3— XV. 2] I. CHRONICLES 261
dom was lifted up on high, because of his people Israel.
And David took more vi^ives at Jerusalem : and David
begat more sons and daughters.
Now these are the names of his children which he
had in Jerusalem ; Shammua, and Shobab, Nathan, and
Solomon, and Ibhar, and Elishua, and Elpalet, and
Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia, and Elishama, and
Beeliada, and Eliphalet.
And when the Philistines heard that David was
anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up
to seek David. And David heard of it, and went out
against them. And the Philistines came and spread
themselves in the valley of Rephaim. And David
enquired of God, saying : — " Shall I go up against the
Philistines? and wilt Thou deliver them into mine
hand?" And the Lord said unto him : — " Go up; for
I will deliver them into thine hand." So they came up
to Baal-perazim ; and David smote them there. Then
David said : — " God hath broken in upon mine enemies
by mine hand like the breaking forth of waters:"
therefore they called the name of that place Baal-
perazim. And when they had left their gods there,
David gave a commandment, and they were burned with
fire.
And the Philistines yet again spread themselves
abroad in the valley. Therefore David enquired again
of God; and God said unto him : — " Go not up after
them; turn away from them, and come upon them over
against the mulberry trees. And it shall be, when thou
shalt hear a sound of going in the tops of the mulberry
trees, that then thou shalt go out to battle : for God
is gone forth before thee to smite the host of the Philis-
tines." David therefore did as God commanded him:
and they smote the host of the Philistines from Gibeon
even to Gazer. And the fame of David went out into
all lands ; and the Lord brought the fear of him upon
all nations.
And David made him houses in the city of David, and
prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched for it
a tent. Then David said : — " None ought to carry the
ark of God but the Levites : for them hath the Lord
chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto
262 I. CHRONICLES [xv. 3-20
Him for ever." And David gathered all Israel together
to Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the Lord unto its
place, which he had prepared for it. And David
assembled the children of Aaron, and the Levites : of
the sons of Kohath ; Uriel the chief, and his brethren
an hundred and twenty : of the sons of Merari ; Asaiah
the chief, and his brethren two hundred and twenty :
of the sons of Gershom ; Joel the chief, and his breth-
ren an hundred and thirty : of the sons of Elizaphan ;
Shemaiah the chief, and his brethren two hundred :
of the sons of Hebron ; Eliel the chief, and his brethren
fourscore : of the sons of Uzziel ; Amminadab the
chief, and his brethren an hundred and twelve. And
David called for Zadok and Abiathar the priests, and
for the Levites, for Uriel, Asaiah, and Joel, Shemaiah,
and Eliel, and Amminadab, and said unto them : — " Ye
are the chief of the fathers of the Levites : sanctify
yourselves, both ye and your brethren, that ye may
bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel unto the
place that I have prepared for it. For because ye did
it not at the first, the Lord our God made a breach upon
us, for that we sought Him not after the due order."
So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves
to bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel. And
the children of the Levites bare the ark of God upon
their shoulders with the staves thereon, as Moses com-
manded according to the word of the Lord. And David
spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their
brethren to be the singers with instruments of music,
psalteries and harps and cymbals, sounding, by lifting
up the voice with joy. So the Levites appointed He-
man the son of Joel; and of his brethren, Asaph the
son of Berechiah ; and of the sons of Merari their
brethren, Ethan the son of Kushaiah ; and with them
their brethren of the second degree, Zechariah, Ben,
and Jaaziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Unni,
Eliab, and Benaiah, and Maaseiah, and Mattithiah, and
Elipheleh, and Mikneiah, and Obed-edom, and Jeiel, the
porters. So the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan,
were appointed to sound with cymbals of brass ; and
Zechariah, and Aziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel,
and Unni, and Eliab, and Maaseiah, and Benaiah, with
XV. 21— xvi. 5] I. CHRONICLES 263
psalteries set to " Alamoth " ; and Mattithiah, and
Elipheleh, and Mikneiah, and Obed-edom, and Jeiel, and
Azaziah, with harps set to the " Sheminith " to lead.
And Chenaniah, chief of the Levites, was for song : he
instructed about the song, because he was skilful. And
Berechiah and Elkanah were doorkeepers for the ark.
And Shebaniah, and Jehoshaphat, and Nethaneel, and
Amasai, and Zechariah, and Benaiah, and Eliezer, the
priests, did blow with the trumpets before the ark of
God : and Obed-edom and Jehiah were doorkeepers
for the ark.
So David, and the elders of Israel, and the captains
over thousands, went to bring up the ark of the cove-
nant of the Lord out of the house of Obed-edom with
joy. And it came to pass, when God helped the Levites
that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord, that they
offered seven bullocks and seven rams. And David
was clothed with a robe of fine linen, and all the Levites
that bare the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah the
master of the song with the singers : David also had
upon him an ephod of linen. Thus all Israel brought
up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with shouting,
and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and
with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and
harps.
And it came to pass, as the ark of the covenant of
the Lord came to the city of David, that Michal the
daughter of Saul looking out at a window saw king
David dancing and playing : and she despised him in
her heart. So they brought the ark of God, and set it
in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it :
and they offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings
before God. And when David had made an end of
offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he
blessed the people in the name of the Lord. And he
dealt to every one of Israel, both man and woman, to
every one a loaf of bread, and a good piece of flesh,
and a flagon of wine.
And he appointed certain of the Levites to minister
before the ark of the Lord, and to record, and to thank
and praise the Lord God of Israel : Asaph the chief,
and next to him Zechariah, Jeiel, and Shemiramoth,
264 I. CHRONICLES [xvi. 6-24
and Jehiel, and Mattithiah, and Eliab, and Benaiah,
and Obed-edom : and Jeiel with psalteries and with
harps ; but Asaph made a sound with cymbals ; Benaiah
also and Jahaziel the priests with trumpets continually
before the ark of the covenant of God. Then on that
day David delivered first this psalm to thank the Lord
into the hand of Asaph and his brethren.
Give thanks unto the Lord, call upon His name,
Make known His deeds among- the people.
Sing unto Him, sing psalms unto Him,
Talk ye of all His wondrous works.
Glory ye in His holy name :
Let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.
Seek the Lord and His strength.
Seek His face continually.
Remember His marvellous works that He hath
done.
His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth;
O ye seed of Israel His servant.
Ye children of Jacob, His chosen ones.
He is the Lord our God ;
His judgments are in all the earth.
Be ye mindful always of His covenant ;
The word which He commanded to a thousand
generations ;
The covenant which He made with Abraham,
And His oath unto Isaac;
And hath confirmed the same to Jacob for a law,
To Israel for an everlasting covenant.
Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan,
The lot of your inheritance ;
When ye were but few.
Even a few, and strangers in it.
And when they went from nation to nation.
And from one kingdom to another people ;
He suffered no man to do them wrong :
Yea, He reproved kings for their sakes.
Saying, Touch not Mine anointed.
And do My prophets no harm.
Sing unto the Lord, all the earth ;
Shew forth from day to day His salvation.
Declare His glory among the heathen ;
xvi. 25-40] I. CHRONICLES 265
His marvellous works among- all nations.
For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised :
He also is to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the people are idols ;
But the Lord made the heavens.
Glory and honour are in His presence ;
Strength and gladness are in His place.
Give unto the Lord, ye kindreds of the people.
Give unto the Lord glory and strength.
Give unto the Lord the glory due unto His name :
Bring an offering, and come before Him :
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
Fear before Him, all the earth :
The world also is stablished that it cannot be
moved.
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth
rejoice :
And let men say among the nations, The Lord
reigneth.
Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof :
Let the fields rejoice, and all that is therein.
Then shall the trees of the wood sing out at the
presence of the Lord,
Because He cometh to judge the earth.
O give thanks unto the Lord ; for He is good ;
For His mercy endureth for ever.
And say ye, Save us, O God of our salvation,
And gather us together, and deliver us from the
heathen,
That we may give thanks to Thy holy name, and
glory in Thy praise.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
From everlasting even to everlasting.
And all the people said Amen, and praised the Lord.
So he left there before the ark of the covenant of the
Lord Asaph and his brethren, to minister before the ark
continually, as every day's work required : and Obed-
edom with their brethren, threescore and eight ; Obed-
edom also the son of Jeduthun and Hosah to be porters :
and Zadok the priest, and his brethren the priests, be-
fore the tabernacle of the Lord in the high place that
was at Gibeon, to offer burnt offerings unto the Lord
K 2
266 I. CHRONICLES [xvi. 41— xvii. 10
upon the altar of the burnt offering- continually morning
and evening, and to do according to all that is written
in the law of the Lord, which He commanded Israel :
and with them Heman and Jeduthun, and the rest that
were chosen, who were expressed by name, to give
thanks to the Lord, because His mercy endureth for
ever; and with them Heman and Jeduthun with trum-
pets and cymbals for those that should make a sound,
and with musical Instruments of God. And the sons
of Jeduthun were porters.
And all the people departed every man to his house :
and David returned to bless his house. Now it came
to pass, as David sat in his house, that David said to
Nathan the prophet: — " Lo, I dwell in an house of
cedars, but the ark of the covenant of the Lord
remaineth under curtains." Then Nathan said unto
David: — "Do all that is in thine heart; for God is
with thee." And it came to pass the same night, that
the word of God came to Nathan, saying: — " Go and
tell David My servant, Thus saith the Lord, Thou shalt
not build Me an house to dwell in : for I have not
dwelt in an house since the day that I brought up Israel
unto this day ; but have gone from tent to tent, and
from one tabernacle to another. Wheresoever I have
walked with all Israel, spake I a word to any of the
judges of Israel, whom I commanded to feed My people,
saying. Why have ye not built Me an house of cedars?
Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto My servant
David, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I took thee from
the sheepcote, even from following the sheep, that thou
shouldest be ruler over My people Israel : and I have
been with thee whithersoever thou hast walked, and
have cut off all thine enemies from before thee, and
have made thee a name like the name of the great men
that are in the earth. Also I will ordain a place for
My people Israel, and will plant them, and they shall
dwell in their place, and shall be moved no more ;
neither shall the children of wickedness waste them
any more, as at the beginning, and since the time that
I commanded judges to be over My people Israel.
Moreover I will subdue all thine enemies. Furthermore
I tell thee that the Lord will build thee an house. And
xvii. 11-25] I. CHRONICLES 267
it shall come to pass, when thy days be expired that
thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will raise
up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons ; and
I will estabUsh his kingdom. He shall build Me an
house, and I will stablish his throne for ever. I will
be his father, and he shall be My son : and I will not
take My mercy away from him, as I took it from him
that was before thee : but I will settle him in Mine
house and in My kingdom for ever : and his throne
shall be established for evermore."
According to all these words, and according to all
this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David. And
David the king came and sat before the Lord, and
said : — " Who am I, O Lord God, and what is mine
house, that Thou hast brought me hitherto? And yet
this was a small thing in Thine eyes, O God ; for Thou
hast also spoken of Thy servant's house for a great
while to come, and hast regarded me according to the
estate of a man of high degree, O Lord God. What
can David speak more to Thee for the honour of Thy
servant? for Thou knowest Thy servant. O Lord, for
Thy servant's sake, and according to Thine own heart,
hast Thou done all this greatness, in making known all
these great things.
" O Lord, there is none like Thee, neither is there any
God beside Thee, according to all that we have heard
with our ears. And what one nation in the earth is like
Thy people Israel, whom God went to redeem to be His
own people, to make Thee a name of greatness and
terribleness, by driving out nations from before Thy
people, whom Thou hast redeemed out of Egypt? For
Thy people Israel didst Thou make Thine own people
for ever; and Thou, Lord, becamest their God. There-
fore now, Lord, let the thing that Thou hast spoken
concerning Thy servant and concerning his house be
estabHshed for ever, and do as Thou hast said. Let
it even be established, that Thy name may be magnified
for ever, saying, The Lord of hosts is the God of Israel,
even a God to Israel : and let the house of David Thy
servant be established before Thee. For Thou, O my
God, hast told Thy servant that Thou wilt build him
an house : therefore Thy servant hath found in his
268 I. CHRONICLES [xvii. 26— xviii. 13
heart to pray before Thee. And now, Lord, Thou art
God, and hast promised this goodness unto Thy serv-
ant : now therefore let it please Thee to bless the
house of Thy servant, that it may be before Thee for
ever : for Thou blessest, O Lord, and it shall be blessed
for ever. ' '
Now after this it came to pass, that David smote the
Philistines, and subdued them, and took Gath and her
towns out of the hand of the Philistines. And he
smote Moab ; and the Moabites became David's serv-
ants, and brought gifts. And David smote Hadadezer
king of Zobah unto Hamath, as he went to stablish
his dominion by the river Euphrates. And David took
from him a thousand chariots, and seven thousand
horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen : David also
houghed all the chariot horses, but reserved of them an
hundred chariots. And when the Syrians of Damas-
cus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David slew
of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men. Then
David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus ; and the
Syrians became David's servants, and brought gifts.
Thus the Lord preserved David whithersoever he went.
And David took the shields of gold that were on the
ser\'ants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
Likewise from Tibhath, and from Chun, cities of Hadad-
ezer, brought David very much brass, wherewith Solo-
mon made the brasen sea, and the pillars, and the
vessels of brass.
Now when Tou king of Hamath heard how David
had smitten all the host of Hadadezer king of Zobah ;
he sent Hadoram his son to king David, to enquire of
his welfare, and to congratulate him, because he had
fought against Hadadezer, and smitten him ; (for Hadad-
ezer had war with Tou ;) and with him all manner of
vessels of gold and silver and brass. Them also king
David dedicated unto the Lord, with the silver and
the gold that he brought from all these nations ; from
Edom, and from Moab, and from the children of Am-
mon, and from the Philistines, and from Amalek.
Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah slew of the
Edomites in the valley of salt eighteen thousand. And
he put garrisons in Edom ; and all the Edomites be-
xviii. 14— xix. 9] I. CHRONICLES 269
came David's servants. Thus the Lord preserved
David whithersoever he went.
So David reigned over all Israel, and executed judg-
ment and justice among" all his people. And Joab the
son of Zeruiah was over the host; and Jehoshaphat
the son of Ahilud, recorder. And Zadok the son of
Ahitub, and Abimelech the son of Abiathar, were the
priests ; and Shavsha was scribe ; and Benaiah the
son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pele-
thites ; and the sons of David were chief about the
king-.
Now it came to pass after this, that Nahash the king-
of the children of Ammon died, and his son reigjned in
his stead. And David said : — " I will shew kindness
unto Hanun the son of Nahash, because his father
shewed kindness to me." And David sent messengers
to comfort him concerning his father. So the servants
of David came into the land of the children of Ammon
to Hanun, to comfort him. But the princes of the
children of Ammon said to Hanun : — " Thinkest thou
that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent
comforters unto thee? are not his servants come unto
thee for to search, and to overthrow, and to spy out
the land?" Wherefore Hanun took David's servants,
and shaved them, and cut off their garments in the
midst hard by their buttocks, and sent them away.
Then there went certain, and told David how the
men were served. And he sent to meet them : for the
men were greatly ashamed. And the king said : —
" Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then
return." And when the children of Ammon saw that
they had made themselves odious to David, Hanun and
the children of Ammon sent a thousand talents of silver
to hire them chariots and horsemen out of Mesopo-
tamia, and out of Syria-maachah, and out of Zobah.
So they hired thirty and two thousand chariots, and
the king of Maachah and his people ; who came and
pitched before Medeba. And the children of Ammon
gathered themselves together from their cities, and
came to battle. And when David heard of it, he sent
Joab, and all the host of the mighty men. And the
children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in
270 I. CHRONICLES [xix. lo— xx. 2
array before the gate of the city : and the kings that
were come were by themselves in the field. Now when
Joab saw that the battle was set against him before
and behind, he chose out of all the choice of Israel,
and put them in array against the Syrians. And the
rest of the people he delivered unto the hand of Abishai
his brother, and they set themselves in array against
the children of Ammon. And he said : — " If the
Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me :
but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee,
then I will help thee. Be of good courage, and let
us behave ourselves valiantly for our people, and for
the cities of our God : and let the Lord do that which
is good in His sight." So Joab and the people that
were with him drew nigh before the Syrians unto the
battle ; and they fled before him. And when the
children of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fled,
they likewise fled before Abishai his brother, and
entered into the city. Then Joab came to Jerusalem.
And when the Syrians saw that they were put to the
worse before Israel, they sent messengers, and drew
forth the Syrians that were beyond the River : and
Shophach the captain of the host of Hadadezer went
before them. And it was told David ; and he gathered
all Israel, and passed over Jordan, and came upon
them, and set the battle in array against them. So
when David had put the battle in array against the
Syrians, they fought with him. But the Syrians fled
before Israel ; and David slev/ of the Syrians seven
thousand men which fought in chariots, and forty
thousand footmen, and killed Shophach the captain of
the host. And when the servants of Hadadezer saw
that they were put to the worse before Israel, they
made peace with David, and became his servants :
neither would the Syrians help the children of Ammon
any more.
And it came to pass, that after the year was expired,
at the time that kings go out to battle, Joab led forth
the power of the army, and wasted the country of the
children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah.
But David tarried at Jerusalem. And Joab smote
Rabbah, and destroyed it. And David took the crown
XX. 3— xxi. 6] I. CHRONICLES 271
of their king- from off his head, and found it to weigh
a talent of gold, and there were precious stones in it;
and it was set upon David's head : and he brought
also exceeding much spoil out of the city. And he
brought out the people that were in it, and cut them
with saws, and with harrows of iron, and with axes.
Even so dealt David with all the cities of the children
of Ammon. And David and all the people returned to
Jerusalem.
And it came to pass after this, that there arose war
at Gezer with the Philistines ; at which time Sibbechai
the Hushathite slew Sippai, that was of the children
of the giant : and they were subdued.
And there was war again with the Philistines ; and
Elhanan the son of Jair slew Lahmi the brother of Go-
liath the Gittite, whose spear-staff was like a weaver's
beam.
And yet again there was war at Gath, where was a
man of great stature, whose fingers and toes were four
and twenty, six on each hand, and six on each foot :
and he also was the son of the giant. But when he
defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea David's
brother slew him. These were born unto the giant in
Gath; and they fell by the hand of David, and by the
hand of his servants.
And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked
David to number Israel. And David said to Joab and
to the rulers of the people : — " Go, number Israel from
Beer-sheba even to Dan ; and bring the number of them
to me, that I may know it." And Joab answered: —
" The Lord make His people an hundred times so many
more as they be : but, my lord the king, are they not
all my lord's servants? why then doth my lord require
this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to
Israel?" Nevertheless the king's word prevailed
against Joab. Wherefore Joab departed, and went
throughout all Israel, and came to Jerusalem. And
Joab gave the sum of the number of the people unto
David. And all they of Israel were a thousand thou-
sand and an hundred thousand men that drew sword :
and Judah was four hundred threescore and ten thou-
sand men that drew sword. But Levi and Benjamin
272 I. CHRONICLES [xxi. 7-18
counted he not among them : for the king's word was
abominable to Joab.
And God was displeased with this thing ; therefore
He smote Israel. And David said unto God : — " I
have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing :
but now, I beseech Thee, do away the iniquity of Thy
servant; for I have done very foolishly." And the
Lord spake unto Gad, David's seer, saying : — " Go and
tell David, saying. Thus saith the Lord, I offer thee
three things : choose thee one of them, that I may
do it unto thee." So Gad came to David, and said
unto him : — " Thus saith the Lord, Choose thee either
three years' famine; or three months to be destroyed
before thy foes, while that the sword of thine enemies
overtaketh thee ; or else three days the sword of the
Lord, even the pestilence, in the land, and the angel
of the Lord destroying throughout all the coasts of
Israel. Now therefore advise thyself what word I shall
bring again to Him that sent me." And David said
unto Gad: — "I am in a great strait: let me fall
now into the hand of the Lord ; for very great
are His mercies : but let me not fall into the hand of
man. "
So the Lord sent pestilence upon Israel : and there
fell of Israel seventy thousand men. And God sent an
angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it : and as he was
destroying, the Lord beheld, and He repented Him of
the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed: — "It
is enough, stay now thine hand." And the angel of the
Lord stood by the threshingfloor of Oman the Jebusite.
And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the
Lord stand between the earth and the heaven, having
a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jeru-
salem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were
clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces. And David
said unto God : — " Is it not I that commanded the
people to be numbered? even I it is that have sinned
and done evil indeed ; but as for these sheep, what have
they done? let Thine hand, I pray Thee, O Lord my
God, be on me, and on my father's house; but not on
Thy people, that they should be plagued."
Then the angel of the Lord commanded Gad to say
xxi. 19— xxii. 3] I. CHRONICLES 273
to David, that David should go up, and set up an
altar unto the Lord in the threshingfloor of Oman the
Jebusite. And David went up at the saying of Gad,
which he spake in the name of the Lord. And Oman
turned back, and saw the angel ; and his four sons with
him hid themselves. Now Oman was threshing wheat.
And as David came to Oman, Oman looked and saw
David, and went out of the threshingfloor, and bowed
himself to David with his face to the ground. Then
David said to Oman: — "Grant me the place of this
threshingfloor, that I may build an altar therein unto
the Lord : thou shalt grant it me for the full price :
that the plague may be stayed from the people." And
Oman said unto David: — "Take it to thee, and let
my lord the king do that which is good in his eyes :
lo, I give thee the oxen also for burnt offerings, and the
threshing instruments for wood, and the wheat for the
meal offering; I give it all." And king David said
to Oman : — " Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full
price : for I will not take that which is thine for the
Lord, nor offer burnt offerings without cost." So
David gave to Oman for the place six hundred shekels
of gold by weight. And David built there an altar unto
the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offer-
ings, and called upon the Lord ; and He answered him
from heaven by fire upon the altar of burnt offering.
And the Lord commanded the angel ; and he put up his
sword again into the sheath thereof.
At that time when David saw that the Lord had
answered him in the threshingfloor of Oman the Jebu-
site, then he sacrificed there. For the tabernacle of
the Lord, which Moses made in the wilderness, and the
altar of the burnt offering, were at that season in the
high place at Gibeon. But David could not go before
it to enquire of God : for he was afraid because of the
sword of the angel of the Lord. Then David said : —
" This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the
altar of the burnt offering for Israel." And David
commanded to gather together the strangers that were
in the land of Israel ; and he set masons to hew wrought
stones to build the house of God. And David pre-
pared iron in abundance for the nails for the doorg of
274 I- CHRONICLES [xxii. 4-16
the gates, and for the joinings ; and brass in abundance
without weight ; also cedar trees in abundance : for
the Sidonians and they of Tyre brought much cedar
wood to David. And David said : — " Solomon my
son Is young and tender, and the house that is to be
builded for the Lord must be exceeding magnifical, of
fame and of glory throughout all countries : I will
therefore now make preparation for it." So David
prepared abundantly before his death.
Then he called for Solomon his son, and charged him
to build an house for the Lord God of Israel. And'
David said to Solomon : — " My son, as for me, it was
in my mind to build an house unto the name of the Lord
my God : but the word of the Lord came to me, say-
ing. Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made
great wars : thou shalt not build an house unto My
name, because thou hast shed much blood upon the
earth in My sight. Behold, a son shall be born to
thee, who shall be a man of rest ; and I will give him
rest from all his enemies round about : for his name
shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quietness
unto Israel in his days. He shall build an house for
My name; and he shall be My son, and I will be his
father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom
over Israel for ever. Now, my son, the Lord be with
thee; and prosper thou, and build the house of the
Lord thy God, as He hath said of thee. Only the Lord
give thee wisdom and understanding, and give thee
charge concerning Israel, that thou mayest keep the
law of the Lord thy God. Then shalt thou prosper, if
thou takest heed to fulfil the statutes and judgments
which the Lord charged Moses with concerning Israel :
be strong, and of good courage ; dread not, nor be dis-
mayed. Now, behold, in my affliction I have prepared
for the house of the Lord an hundred thousand talents
of gold, and a thousand thousand talents of silver ; and
of brass and iron without weight ; for it is in abund-
ance : timber also and stone have I prepared ; and
thou mayest add thereto. Moreover there are workmen
with thee in abundance, hewers and workers of stone
and timber, and all manner of cunning men for every
manner of work. Of the gold, the silver, and the
xxii. 17— xxiii. 13] I. CHRONICLES 275
brass, and the iron, there is no number. Arise there-
fore, and be doing-, and the Lord be with thee."
David also commanded all the princes of Israel to
help Solomon his son, saying: :— " Is not the Lord your
God with you? and hath He not g-iven you rest on
every side? for He hath g-iven the inhabitants of the
land'^into mine hand; and the land is subdued before
the Lord, and before His people. Now set your heart
and your soul to seek the Lord your God ; arise there-
fore, and build ye the sanctuary of the Lord God, to
bring- the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the holy
vessels of God, into the house that is to be built to the
name of the Lord."
Now David was old and full of days ; and he
made Solomon his son king- over Israel. And he
gathered together all the princes of Israel, with the
priests and "the Levites. Now the Levites were num-
bered from the age of thirty years and upward : and
their number by their polls, man by man, was thirty and
eight thousand. Of these, twenty and four thousand
were to oversee the work of the house of the Lord ;
and six thousand were officers and judges : moreover
four thousand were porters ; and four thousand praised
the Lord with the instruments which I made, said
David, to praise therewith. And David divided them
into courses among the sons of Levi, namely, Gershon,
Kohath, and Merari.
Of the Gershonites were, Laadan, and Shimei. The
sons of Laadan ; the chief was Jehiel, and Zetham, and
Joel, three. The sons of Shimei; Shelomith, and
Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the chief of the
fathers of Laadan. And the sons of Shimei were, Ja-
hath, Zina, and Jeush, and Beriah. These four were
the sons of Shimei. And Jahath was the chief, and
Zizah the second : but Jeush and Beriah had not many
sons ; therefore they were in one reckoning, accord-
ing to their father's house.
The sons of Kohath; Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and
Uzziel, four. The sons of Amram ; Aaron and Moses :
and Aaron was separated, that he should sanctify the
most holy things, he and his sons for ever, to burn
incense before the Lord, to minister unto Him, and
276 I. CHRONICLES [xxiii. 14-32
to bless in His name for ever. Now concerning- Moses
the man of God, his sons were named of the tribe of
Levi. The sons of Moses were, Gershom, and EHezer.
Of the sons of Gershom, Shebuel was the chief. And
the sons of Ehezer were, Rehabiah the chief. And
Eliezer had none other sons ; but the sons of Rehabiah
were very many. Of the sons of Izhar; Shelomith the
chief. Of the sons of Hebron ; Jeriah the first, Ama-
riah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the
fourth. Of the sons of Uzziel ; Micah the first, and
Jesiah the second.
The sons of Merari ; Mahli, and Mushi. The sons
of Mahli ; Eleazar, and Kish. And Eleazar died, and
had no sons, but daughters : and their brethren the
sons of Kish took them. The sons of Mushi; Mahli,
and Eder, and Jeremoth, three.
These were the sons of Levi after the house of their
fathers ; even the chief of the fathers, as they were
counted by number of names by their polls, that did the
work for the service of the house of the Lord, from the
age of twenty years and upward. For David said :—
" The Lord God of Israel hath given rest unto His
people, that they may dwell in Jerusalem for ever : and
also unto the Levites ; they shall no more carry the
tabernacle, nor any vessels of it for the service thereof."
For by the last words of David the Levites were num-
bered from twenty years old and above : because their
office was to wait on the sons of Aaron for the service
of the house of the Lord, in the courts, and in the
chambers, and in the purifying of all holy things, and
the work of the service of the house of God ; both
for the shewbread, and for the fine flour for meal offer-
ing, and for the unleavened cakes, and for that which
is baked in the pan, and for that which is fried, and
for all manner of measure and size ; and to stand every
morning- to thank and praise the Lord, and likewise
at even ; and to offer all burnt sacrifices unto the Lord
in the sabbaths, in the new moons, and on the set feasts,
by number, according to the order commanded unto
them, continually before the Lord : and that they
should keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congre-
gation, and the charge of the holy place, and the charge
xxiv. 1-20] I. CHRONICLES 277
of the sons of Aaron their brethren, in the service of
the house of the Lord.
Now these are the divisions of the sons of Aaron.
The sons of Aaron; Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and
Ithamar. But Nadab and Abihu died before their
father, and had no children : therefore Eleazar and
Ithamar executed the priest's office. And David dis-
tributed them, both Zadok of the sons of Eleazar, and
Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar, according to their
offices in their service. And there were more chief
men found of the sons of Eleazar than of the sons of
Ithamar ; and thus were they divided. Among- the
sons of Eleazar there were sixteen chief men of the
house of their fathers, and eight among the sons of
Ithamar according to the house of their fathers. Thus
were they divided by lot, one sort with another ; for
the governors of the sanctuary, and governors of the
house of God, were of the sons of Eleazar, and of the
sons of Ithamar. And Shemaiah the son of Nethaneel
the scribe, one of the Levites, wrote them before the
king, and the princes, and Zadok the priest, and Ahime-
lech the son of Abiathar, and before the chief of the
fathers of the priests and Levites : one principal house-
hold being taken for Eleazar, and one taken for Itha-
mar. Now the first lot came forth to Jehoiarib, the
second to Jedaiah, the third to Harim, the fourth to
Seorim, the fifth to Malchijah, the sixth to Mijamin,
the seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah, the ninth
to Jeshuah, the tenth to Shecaniah, the eleventh to
Eliashib, the twelfth to Jakim, the thirteenth to Hup-
pah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab, the fifteenth to
Bilgah, the sixteenth to Immer, the seventeenth to
Hezir, the eighteenth to Aphses, the nineteenth to
Pethahiah, the twentieth to Jehezekel, the one and
twentieth to Jachin, the two and twentieth to Gamul,
the three and twentieth to Delaiah, the four and
twentieth to Maaziah. These were the orderings of
them in their service to come into the house of the Lord,
according to their manner, under Aaron their father, as
the Lord God of Israel had commanded him.
And the rest of the sons of Levi were these : of the
sons of Amram ; Shubael : of the sons of Shubael ;
2/8 I. CHRONICLES [xxiv. 21— xxv 7
Jehdeiah. Concerning Rehabiah : of the sons of Reha-
biah, the first was Isshiah. Of the Izharites ; Shelo-
moth : of the sons of Shelomoth ; Jahath. And the
sons of Hebron; Jeriah the first, Amariah the second,
Jahaziel the third, Jekameam the fourth. Of the sons
of Uzziel ; Michah : of the sons of Michah ; Shamir.
The brother of Michah was Issliiah : of the sons of
Isshiah ; Zechariah. The sons of Merari were Mahli
and Mushi : the sons of Jaaziah ; Beno. The sons of
Merari by Jaaziah ; Beno, and Shoham, and Zaccur,
and Ibri. Of MahU came Eleazar, who had no sons.
Concerning- Kish : the son of Kish was Jerahmeel.
The sons also of Mushi ; Mahli, and Eder, and Jeri-
moth. These were the sons of the Levites after the
house of their fathers. These likewise cast lots over
against their brethren the sons of Aaron in the presence
of David the king, and Zadok, and Ahimelech, and the
chief of the fathers of the priests and Levites, even the
principal fathers over against their younger brethren.
Moreover David and the captains of the host separ-
ated to the service of the sons of Asaph, and of Heman,
and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, with
psalteries, and with cymbals : and the number of the
workmen according to their service was : of the sons
of Asaph ; Zaccur, and Joseph, and Nethaniah, and
Asarelah, the sons of Asaph under the hands of Asaph,
which prophesied according to the order of the king.
Of Jeduthun : the sons of Jeduthun ; Gedaliah, and
Zeri, and Jeshaiah, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six,
under the hands of their father Jeduthun, who prophe-
sied with a harp, to give thanks and to praise the Lord.
Of Heman : the sons of Heman; Bukkiah, Mattaniah,
Uzziel, Shebuel, and Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani,
Eliathah, Giddalti, and Romamti-ezer, Joshbekashah,
Mallothi, Hothir, and Mahazioth : all these were the
sons of Heman the king's seer in the words of God,
to lift up the horn. And God gave to Heman fourteen
sons and three daughters. All these were under the
hands of their father for song in the house of the Lord,
with cymbals, psalteries, and harps, for the service of
the house of God, according to the king's order to
Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman. So the number of
XXV. 8— xxvi. 3] I. CHRONICLES 279
them, with their brethren that were instructed in the
songs of the Lord, even all that were cunning, was two
hundred fourscore and eight.
And they cast lots, ward against ward, as well the
small as the great, the teacher as the scholar. Now
the first lot came forth for Asaph to Joseph : the second
to Gedaliah, who with his brethren and sons were
twelve : the third to Zaccur, he, his sons, and his
brethren, were twelve : the fourth to Izri, he, his sons,
and his brethren, were twelve : the fifth to Nethaniah,
he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve : the sixth
to Bukkiah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were
twelve : the seventh to Jesharelah, he, his sons, and his
brethren, were twelve : the eighth to Jeshaiah, he, his
sons, and his brethren, were twelve : the ninth to Mat-
taniah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve :
the tenth to Shimei, he, his sons, and his brethren, were
twelve : the eleventh to Azareel, he, his sons, and his
brethren, were twelve : the twelfth to Hashabiah, he,
his sons, and his brethren, were twelve : the thirteenth
to Shubael, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve :
the fourteenth to Mattithiah, he, his sons, and his
brethren, were twelve : the fifteenth to Jeremoth, he,
his sons, and his brethren, were twelve : the sixteenth
to Hananiah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were
twelve : the seventeenth to Joshbekashah, he, his sons,
and his brethren, were twelve : the eighteenth to Ha-
nani, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve : the
nineteenth to Mallothi, he, his sons, and his brethren,
were twelve : the twentieth to Eliathah, he, his sons,
and his brethren, were twelve : the one and twentieth
to Hothir, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve :
the two and twentieth to Giddalti, he, his sons, and
his brethren, were twelve : the three and twentieth to
Mahazioth, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve :
the four and twentieth to Romamti-ezer, he, his sons,
and his brethren, were twelve.
Concerning the divisions of the porters : of the Kor-
hites was Meshelemiah the son of Kore, of the sons of
Asaph. And the sons of Meshelemiah were, Zechariah
the firstborn, Jediael the second, Zebadiah the third,
Jathniel the fourth, Elam the fifth, Jehohanan the sixth,
28o I. CHRONICLES [xxvi. 4-22
Elioenai the seventh. Moreover the sons of Obed-
edom were Shemaiah the firstborn, Jehozabad the
second, Joah the third, and Sacar the fourth, and Neth-
aneel the fifth, Ammiel the sixth, Issachar the seventh,
Peulthai the eighth : for God blessed him. Also unto
Shemaiah his son were sons born, that ruled through-
out the house of their father : for they were mighty
men of valour. The sons of Shemaiah ; Othni, and
Rephael, and Obed, Elzabad, whose brethren were
strong men, Elihu, and Semachiah. All these of the
sons of Obed-edom : they and their sons and their
brethren, able men for strength for the service, were
threescore and two of Obed-edom. And Meshelemiah
had sons and brethren, strong men, eighteen. Also
Hosah, of the children of Merari, had sons ; Simri the
chief, (for though he was not the firstborn, yet his
father made him the chief ;) Hilkiah the second, Teba-
liah the third, Zechariah the fourth : all the sons and
brethren of Hosah were thirteen. Among these were
the divisions of the porters, even among the chief men,
having wards one against another, to minister in the
house of the Lord.
And they cast lots, as well the small as the great,
according to the house of their fathers, for every gate.
And the lot eastward fell to Shelemiah. Then for
Zechariah his son, a wise counsellor, they cast lots;
and his lot came out northward. To Obed-edom south-
ward ; and to his sons the house of Asuppim. To
Shuppim and Hosah the lot came forth westward, with
the gate Shallecheth, by the causeway of the going up,
ward against ward. Eastward were six Levites, north-
ward four a day, southward four a day, and toward
Asuppim two and two. At Parbar westward, four at
the causeway, and two at Parbar. These are the divi-
sions of the porters among the sons of Kore, and among
the sons of Merari.
And of the Levites, Ahijah was over the treasures of
the house of God, and over the treasures of the dedi-
cated things. As concerning the sons of Laadan ; the
sons of the Gershonite Laadan, chief fathers, even of
Laadan the Gershonite, were Jehieli. The sons of
Jehieli; Zetham, and Joel his brother, which were over
xxvi. 23— xxvii. 3] I. CHRONICLES 281
the treasures of the house of the Lorti. Of the Amram-
ites, and the Izharites, the Hebronites, and the Uzziel-
ites : and Shebuel the son of Gershom, the son of
Moses, was ruler of the treasures. And his brethren
by Ehezer; Rehabiah his son, and Jeshaiah his son,
and Joram his son, and Zichri his son, and Shelomith
his son. Which Shelomith and his brethren were over
all the treasures of the dedicated things, which David
the king, and the chief fathers, the captains over thou-
sands and hundreds, and the captains of the host, had
dedicated. Out of the spoils won in battles did they
dedicate to maintain the house of the Lord. And all
that Samuel the seer, and Saul the son of Kish, and
Abner the son of Ner, and Joab the son of Zeruiah, had
dedicated ; and whosoever had dedicated any thing, it
was under the hand of Shelomith, and of his brethren.
Of the Izharites, Chenaniah and his sons were for
the outward business over Israel, for officers and
judges. And of the Hebronites, Hashabiah and his
brethren, men of valour, a thousand and seven hundred,
were officers among them of Israel on this side Jordan
westward in all the business of the Lord, and in the
service of the king. Among the Hebronites was Jerijah
the chief, even among the Hebronites, according to the
generations of his fathers. In the fortieth year of the
reign of David they were sought for, and there were
found among them mighty men of valour at Jazer of
Gilead. And his brethren, men of valour, were two
thousand and seven hundred chief fathers, whom king
David made rulers over the Reubenites, the Gadites,
and the half tribe of Manasseh, for every matter per-
taining to God, and affairs of the king.
Now the children of Israel after their number, to wit,
the chief fathers and captains of thousands and
hundreds, and their officers that served the king in any
matter of the courses, which came in and went out
month by month throughout all the months of the year,
of every course were twenty and four thousand. Over
the first course for the first month was Jashobeam the
son of Zabdiel : and in his course were twenty and
four thousand. Of the children of Perez was the chief
of all the captains of the host for the first month. And
282 I. CHRONICLES [xxvii. 4-21
over the course of the second month was Dodai an
Ahohite, and of his course was Mikloth also the ruler :
in his course likewise were twenty and four thousand.
The third captain of the host for the third month was
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, a chief priest : and in his
course were twenty and four thousand. This is that
Benaiah, who was mig'hty among the thirty, and above
the thirty : and in his course was Ammizabad his son.
The fourth captain for the fourth month was Asahel the
brother of Joab, and Zebadiah his son after him : and
in his course were twenty and four thousand. The
fifth captain for the fifth month was Shamhuth the
Izrahite : and in his course were twenty and four thou-
sand. The sixth captain for the sixth month was Ira
the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite : and in his course were
twenty and four thousand. The seventh captain for the
seventh month was Helez the Pelonite, of the children
of Ephraim : and in his course were twenty and four
thousand. The eighth captain for the eighth month
was Sibbecai the Hushathite, of the Zarhites : and in
his course were twenty and four thousand. The ninth
captain for the ninth month was Abiezer the Anetothite,
of the Benjamites : and in his course were twenty and
four thousand. The tenth captain for the tenth month
was Maharai the Netophathite, of the Zarhites : and
in his course were twenty and four thousand. The
eleventh captain for the eleventh month was Benaiah
the Pirathonite, of the children of Ephraim : and in his
course were twenty and four thousand. The twelfth
captain for the twelfth month was Heldai the Neto-
phathite, of Othniel : and in his course were twenty and
four thousand.
Furthermore over the tribes of Israel : the ruler of
the Reubenites was Eliezer the son of Zichri : of the
Simeonites, Shephatiah the son of Maachah : of the
Levites, Hashabiah the son of Kemuel : of the Aaron-
ites, Zadok : of Judah, Elihu, one of the brethren of
David : of Issachar, Omri the son of Michael : of
Zebulun, Ishmaiah the son of Obadiah : of Naphtali,
Jerimoth the son of Azriel : of the children of Ephraim,
Hoshea the son of Azaziah : of the half tribe of Manas-
seh, Joel the son of Pedaiah : of the half tribe of
xxvii. 22— xxviii. I] I. CHRONICLES 283
Manasseh in Gilead, Iddo the son of Zechariah : of
Benjamin, Jaasiel the son of Abner : of Dan, Azareel
the son of Jeroham. These were the princes of the
tribes of Israel.
But David took not the number of them from twenty
years old and under : because the Lord had said He
would increase Israel like to the stars of the heavens.
Joab the son of Zeruiah began to number, but he
finished not, because there fell wrath for it against
Israel ; neither was the number put in the account of
the chronicles of king David.
And over the king's treasures was Azmaveth the son
of Adiel : and over the storehouses in the fields, in the
cities, and in the villages, and in the castles, was Jeho-
nathan the son of Uzziah : and over them that did the
work of the field for tillage of the ground was Ezri the
son of Chelub : and over the vineyards was Shimei the
Ramathite : over the increase of the vineyards for the
wine cellars was Zabdi the Shiphmite : and over the
olive trees and the sycomore trees that were in the low
plains was Baal-hanan the Gederite : and over the
cellars of oil was Joash : and over the herds that fed
in Sharon was Shitrai the Sharonite : and over the
herds that were in the valleys was Shaphat the son of
Adlai : over the camels also was Obil the Ishmaelite :
and over the asses was Jehdeiah the Meronothite : and
over the flocks was Jaziz the Hagerite. All these were
the rulers of the substance which was king David's,
Also Jonathan David's uncle was a counsellor, a wise
man, and a scribe : and Jehiel the son of Hachmoni was
with the king's sons : and Ahithophel was the king's
counsellor : and Hushai the Archite was the king's
companion : and after Ahithophel was Jehoiada the son
of Benaiah, and Abiathar : and the general of the
king's army was Joab.
And David assembled all the princes of Israel,
the princes of the tribes, and the captains of the
companies that ministered to the king by course, and
the captains over the thousands, and captains over
the hundreds, and the stewards over all the substance
and possession of the king, and of his sons, with
the officers, and with the mighty men, and with all
284 I. CHRONICLES [xxviii. 2-12
the valiant men, unto Jerusalem. Then David the king
stood up upon his feet, and said : — " Hear me, my
brethren, and my people : as for me, I had in mine
heart to build an house of rest for the ark of the cove-
nant of the Lord, and for the footstool of our God, and
had made ready for the building' : but God said unto
me. Thou shalt not build an house for My name, be-
cause thou hast been a man of war, and hast shed
blood. Howbeit the Lord God of Israel chose me be-
fore all the house of my father to be king over Israel
for ever: for He hath chosen Judah to be the ruler;
and of the house of Judah, the house of my father ;
and among' the sons of my father He took pleasure in
me to make me king over all Israel : and of all my
sons, (for the Lord hath given me many sons,) He
hath chosen Solomon my son to sit upon the throne of
the kingdom of the Lord over Israel. And He said
unto me, Solomon thy son, he shall build My house
and My courts : for I have chosen him to be My son,
and I will be his Father. Moreover I will establish his
kingdom for ever, if he be constant to do My command-
ments and My judgments, as at this day. Now there-
fore in the sight of all Israel the congregation of the
Lord, and in the audience of our God, keep and seek
for all the commandments of the Lord your God : that
ye may possess this good land, and leave it for an in-
heritance for your children after you for ever. And
thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy
father, and serve Him with a perfect heart and with a
willing mind : for the Lord searcheth all hearts, and
understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts : if
thou seek Him, He will be found of thee; but if thou
forsake Him, He will cast thee off for ever. Take heed
now; for the Lord hath chosen thee to build an house
for the sanctuary : be strong, and do it."
Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of
the porch, and of the houses thereof, and of the
treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers thereof,
and of the inner parlours thereof, and of the place of
the mercy seat, and the pattern of all that he had in
his spirit, of the courts of the house of the Lord, and
of all the chambers round about, of the treasuries of
xxvlii. 13— xxix. 2] I. CHRONICLES 285
the house of God, and of the treasuries of the dedi-
cated thing-s : also for the courses of the priests and
the Levites, and for all the work of the service of the
house of the Lord, and for all the vessels of service in
the house of the Lord. He gave of gold by weight for
things of gold, for all instruments of all manner of
service; silver also for all instruments of silver by
weight, for all instruments of every kind of service :
even the weight for the candlesticks of gold, and for
their lamps of gold, by weight for every candlestick,
and for the lamps thereof : and for the candlesticks of
silver by weight, both for the candlestick, and also for
the lamps thereof, according to the use of every candle-
stick. And by weight he gave gold for the tables of
shewbread, for every table ; and likewise silver for the
tables of silver : also pure gold for the flesh-hooks, and
the bowls, and the cups : and for the golden basons
he gave gold by weight for every bason ; and likewise
silver by weight for every bason of silver : and for the
altar of incense refined gold by weight ; and gold for
the pattern of the chariot of the cherubim, that spread
out their wings, and covered the ark of the covenant
of the Lord. " All this," said David, " the Lord made
me understand in writing by His hand upon me, even
all the works of this pattern."
And David said to Solomon his son: — " Be strong
and of good courage, and do it : fear not, nor be dis-
mayed : for the Lord God, even my God, will be with
thee; He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou
hast finished all the work for the service of the house
of the Lord. And, behold, there are the courses of the
priests and the Levites, for all the service of the house
of God : and there shall be with thee for all manner of
workmanship every willing skilful man, for any manner
of service : also the princes and all the people will be
wholly at thy commandment."
Furthermore David the king said unto all the con-
gregation : — " Solomon my son, whom alone God hath
chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great :
for the palace is not for man, but for the Lord God.
Now I have prepared with all my might for the house
of my God the gold for the things of gold, and the
286 I. CHRONICLES [xxix. 3-14
silver for the thing^s of silver, and the brass for the
things of brass, the iron for the things of iron, and
wood for the things of v/ood ; onyx stones, and stones
to be set, glistering stones, and of divers colours, and
all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in
abundance. Moreover, because I have set my affec-
tion to the house of my God, I have of mine own proper
g'ood, of gold and silver, which I have given to the
house of my God, over and above all that I have pre-
pared for the holy house, even three thousand talents
of g'old, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand
talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the
houses withal : the gold for the things of gold, and
the silver for the things of silver, and for all manner of
work to be made by the hands of artificers. And who
then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto
the Lord?"
Then the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribes
of Israel, and the captains of thousands and of
hundreds, with the rulers of the king's work, offered
willingly, and gave for the service of the house of God
of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand drams,
and of silver ten thousand talents, and of brass eighteen
thousand talents, and one hundred thousand talents of
iron. And they with whom precious stones were found
gave them to the treasure of the house of the Lord, by
the hand of Jehiel the Gershonite. Then the people
rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with
perfect heart they offered willingly to the Lord : and
David the king also rejoiced with great joy.
Wherefore David blessed the Lord before all the con-
g-regation : and David said : — " Blessed be Thou, Lord
God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. Thine, O
Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory,
and the victory, and the majesty : for all that is in the
heaven and in the earth is Thine; Thine is the kingdom,
O Lord, and Thou art exalted as head above all. Both
riches and honour come of Thee, and Thou reignest
over all ; and in Thine hand is power and might ; and
in Thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength
unto all. Now therefore, our God, we thank Thee,
and praise Thy glorious name. But who am I, and
xxix. 15-25] I. CHRONICLES 287
what is my people, that we should be able to offer so
willing-ly after this sort? for all things come of Thee,
and of Thine own have we given Thee. For we are
strang-ers before Thee, and sojourners, as were all our
fathers : our days on the earth are as a shadow, and
there is none abiding. O Lord our God, all this store
that we have prepared to build Thee an house for Thine
holy name cometh of Thine hand, and is all Thine own.
I know also, my God, that Thou triest the heart, and
hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the up-
rightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these
things : and now have I seen with joy Thy people,
which are present here, to offer willingly unto Thee.
O Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our
fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the
thoughts of the heart of Thy people, and prepare their
heart unto Thee : and give unto Solomon my son a
perfect heart, to keep Thy commandments. Thy testi-
monies, and Thy statutes, and to do all these things,
and to build the palace, for the which I have made
provision."
And David said to all the congregation :- — " Now
bless the Lord your God." And all the congregation
blessed the Lord God of their fathers, and bowed down
their heads, and worshipped the Lord, and the king.
And they sacrificed sacrifices unto the Lord, and offered
burnt offerings unto the Lord, on the morrow after that
day, even a thousand bullocks, a thousand rams, and
a thousand lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacri-
fices in abundance for all Israel : and did eat and drink
before the Lord on that day with great gladness. And
they made Solomon the son of David king the second
time, and anointed him unto the Lord to be the chief
governor, and Zadok to be priest.
Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king
instead of David his father, and prospered ; and all
Israel obeyed him. And all the princes, and the mighty
men, and all the sons likewise of king David, submitted
themselves unto Solomon the king. And the Lord
magnified Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all
Israel, and bestowed upon him such royal majesty as
had not been on any king before him in Israel.
288 I. CHRONICLES [xxix. 26-30
Thus David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel.
And the time that he reigned over Israel was forty
years ; seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty
and three years reigned he in Jerusalem. And he died
in a good old age, full of days, riches, and honour : and
Solomon his son reigned in his stead. Now the acts
of David the king, first and last, behold, they are
written in the book of Samuel the seer, and in the book
of Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer,
with all his reign and his might, and the times that
went over him, and over Israel, and over all the king-
doms of the countries.
THE SECOND BOOK OF THE
CHRONICLES
And Solomon the son of David was streng-thened in
his kingdom, and the Lord his God was with him, and
magnified him exceedingly. Then Solomon spake unto
all Israel, to the captains of thousands and of hundreds,
and to the judges, and to every governor in all Israel,
the chief of the fathers. So Solomon, and all the con-
gregation with him, went to the high place that was at
Gibeon ; for there was the tabernacle of the congre-
gation of God, which Moses the servant of the Lord had
made in the wilderness. But the ark of God had David
brought up from Kirjath-jearim to the place which
David had prepared for it : for he had pitched a tent
for it at Jerusalem. Moreover the brasen altar, that
Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made, he
put before the tabernacle of the Lord : and Solomon
and the congregation sought unto it. And Solomon
went up thither to the brasen altar before the Lord,
which was at the tabernacle of the congregation, and
offered a thousand burnt offerings upon it.
In that night did God appear unto Solomon, and said
unto him: — "Ask what I shall give thee." And
Solomon, said unto God :- — " Thou hast shewed great
mercy unto David my father, and hast made me to
reign in his stead. Now, O Lord God, let Thy promise
unto David my father be established : for Thou hast
made me king over a people like the dust of the earth
in multitude. Give me now wisdom and knowledge,
that I may go out and come in before this people : for
who can judge this Thy people, that is so great?" And
God said to Solomon: — "Because this was in thine
heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or
honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast
asked long life ; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge
for thyself, that thou mayest judge My people, over
VOL. II. 280 L
290 II. CHRONICLES [i. 12— ii. 6
whom I have made thee king- : wisdom and knowledge
is granted unto thee ; and I will give thee riches, and
wealth, and honour, such as none of the kings have
had that have been before thee, neither shall there any
after thee have the like."
Then Solomon came from his journey to the high
place that was at Gibeon to Jerusalem, from before the
tabernacle of the congregation, and reigned over Israel.
And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen : and he
had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve
thousand horsemen, which he placed in the chariot
cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. And the king
made silver and gold at Jerusalem as plenteous as
stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycomore trees
that are in the vale for abundance. And Solomon had
horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn : the
king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price.
And they fetched up, and brought forth out of Egypt
a chariot for six hundred shekels of silver, and an horse
for an hundred and fifty : and so brought they out
horses for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the
kings of Syria, by their means.
And Solomon determined to build an house for the
name of the Lord, and an house for his kingdom. And
Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to
bear burdens, and fourscore thousand to hew in the
mountain, and three thousand and six hundred to over-
see them. And Solomon sent to Hiram the king of
Tyre, saying: — "As thou didst deal with David my
father, and didst send him cedars to build him an house
to dwell therein, even so deal with me. Behold, I build
an house to the name of the Lord my God, to dedicate
it to Him, and to burn before Him sweet incense, and
for the continual shewbread, and for the burnt offer-
ings morning and evening, on the sabbaths, and on
the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the Lord
our God. This is an ordinance for ever to Israel. And
the house which I build is great : for great is our God
above all gods. But wlio is able to build Him an house,
seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot con-
tain Him? Who am I then, that I should build Him
an house, save only to burn sacrifice before Him? vSend
ii. 7-18] 11. CHRONICLES 291
me now therefore a man cunning* to work in gold, and
in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and
crimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the
cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jeru-
salem, whom David my father did provide. Send me
also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of
Lebanon : for I know that thy servants can skill to
cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall
be with thy servants, even to prepare me timber in
abundance : for the house which I am about to build
shall be wonderful great. And, behold, I will give to
thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thou-
sand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand
measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine,
and twenty thousand baths of oil."
Then Hiram the king of Tyre answered in writing,
which he sent to Solomon : — " Because the Lord hath
loved His people. He hath made thee king over them."
Hiram said moreover: — " Blessed be the Lord God of
Israel, that made heaven and earth, who hath given to
David the king a wise son, endued with prudence and
understanding, that might build an house for the Lord,
and an house for his kingdom. And now I have sent a
cunning man, endued with understanding, of Hiram
m)' father's, the son of a woman of the daughters of
Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful to work
in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and
in timber, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in
crimson ; also to grave any manner of graving, and
to find out every device which shall be put to him, with
thy cunning men, and with the cunning men of my lord
David thy father. Now therefore the wheat, and the
barley, the oil, and the wine, which my lord hath spoken
of, let him send unto his servants : and we will cut
wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt need :
and we will bring it to thee in floats by sea to Joppa ;
and thou shalt carry it up to Jerusalem."
And Solomon numbered all the strangers that were
in the land of Israel, after the numbering wherewith
David his father had numbered them ; arid they were
found an hundred and fifty thousand and three thousand
and six hundred. And he set threescore and ten thou-
292 II. CHRONICLES [iii. 1-13
sand of them to be bearers of burdens, and fourscore
thousand to be hewers in the mountain, and three thou-
sand and six hundred overseers to set the people a
work. Then Solomon began to build the house of the
Lord at Jerusalem in mount Moriah, where the Lord
appeared unto David his father, in the place that David
had prepared in the threshingfloor of Oman the Jebu-
site. And he began to build in the second day of the
second month, in the fourth year of his reign.
Now these are the things wherein Solomon was in-
structed for the building of the house of God. The
length by cubits after the first measure was threescore
cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. And the porch
that was in the front of the house, the length of it was
according to the breadth of the house, twenty cubits,
and the height was an hundred and twenty : and he
overlaid it within with pure gold. And the greater
house he ceiled with fir tree, which he overlaid with
fine gold, and set thereon palm trees and chains. And
he garnished the house with precious stones for beauty :
and the gold was gold of Parvaim. He overlaid also
the house, the beams, the posts, and the walls thereof,
and the doors thereof, with gold ; and graved cherubim
on the walls. And he made the most holy house, the
length whereof was according to the breadth of the
house, twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty
cubits : and he overlaid it with fine gold, amounting to
six hundred talents. And the weight of the nails was
fifty shekels of gold. And he overlaid the upper cham-
bers W'ith gold.
And in the most holy house he made two cherubim
of image work, and overlaid them with gold. And
the wings of the cherubim were twenty cubits long :
one wing of the one cherub was five cubits, reaching
to the wall of the house : and the other wing was like-
wise five cubits, reaching to the wing of the other
cherub. And one wing of the other cherub was five
cubits, reaching to the wall of the house : and the other
wing was five cubits also, joining to the wing of the
other cherub. The wings of these cherubim spread
themselves forth twenty cubits : and they stood on
their feet, and their faces were inward.
iii. 14— iv. 10] II. CHRONICLES 293
And he made the vail of blue, and purple, and crim-
son, and fine linen, and wrought cherubim thereon.
Also he made before the house two pillars of thirty
and five cubits high, and the chapiter that was on the
top of each of them was five cubits. And he made
chains, as in the oracle, and put them on the heads of
the pillars ; and made an hundred pomegranates, and
put them on the chains. And he reared up the pillars
before the temple, one on the right hand, and the other
on the left ; and called the name of that on the right
hand Jachin, and the name of that on the left Boaz.
Moreover he made an altar of brass, twenty cubits
the length thereof, and twenty cubits the breadth there-
of, and ten cubits the height thereof.
Also he made a molten sea of ten cubits from brim
to brim, round in compass, and five cubits the height
thereof; and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round
about. And under it was the similitude of oxen, which
did compass it round about : ten in a cubit, compass-
ing the sea round about. Two rows of oxen were cast,
when it was cast. It stood upon twelve oxen, three
looking toward the north, and three looking toward
the west, and three looking toward the south, and three
looking toward the east : and the sea was set above
upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.
And the thickness of it was an handbreadth, and the
brim of it like the work of the brim of a cup, with
flowers of lilies ; and it received and held three thou-
sand baths.
He made also ten lavers, and put five on the right
hand, and five on the left, to wash in them : such things
as they offered for the burnt offering they washed in
them ; but the sea was for the priests to wash in. And
he made ten candlesticks of gold according to their
form, and set them in the temple, five on the right hand,
and five on the left. He made also ten tables, and
placed them in the temple, five on the right side, and
five on the left. And he made an hundred basons of
gold. Furthermore he made the court of the priests,
and the great court, and doors for the court, and over-
laid the doors of them with brass. And he set the sea
on the right side of the east end, over against the south.
294 n. CHRONICLES [iv.
And Hiram made the pots, and the shovels, and the
basons. And Hiram finished the work that he was to
make for king- Solomon for the house of God ; to wit,
the two pillars, and the bowls, and the chapiters which
were on the top of the two pillars, and the two wreaths
to cover the two bowls of the chapiters which were on
the top of the pillars ; and four hundred pomegranates
on the two wreaths ; two rows of pomegranates on each
wreath, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters which
were upon the pillars. He made also bases, and lavers
made he upon the bases ; one sea, and twelve oxen
under it. The pots also, and the shovels, and the flesh-
hooks, and all their instruments, did Hiram his father
make to king Solomon for the house of the Lord of
bright brass. In the plain of Jordan did the king cast
them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zere-
dathah.
Thus Solomon made all these vessels in great abund-
ance : for the weight of the brass could not be found
out. And Solomon made all the vessels that were for
the house of God, the g-olden altar also, and the tables
whereon the shewbread was set ; moreover the candle-
sticks with their lamps, that they should burn after the
manner before the oracle, of pure gold ; and the flowers,
and the lamps, and the tongs, made he of g^old, and
that perfect gold ; and the snuffers, and the basons, and
the spoons, and the censers, of pure gold : and the
entry of the house, the inner doors thereof for the most
holy place, and the doors of the house of the temple,
were of gold. Thus all the work that Solomon made
for the house of the Lord was finished : and Solomon
brought in all the things that David his father had dedi-
cated ; and the silver, and the gold, and all the instru-
ments, put he among the treasures of the house of
God.
Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all
the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the
children of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to bring up the ark
of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David,
which is Zion. Wherefore all the men of Israel
assembled themselves unto the king in the feast which
was in the seventh month. And all the elders of Israel
V. 5— vi. 2] II. CHRONICLES 295
came ; and the Levites took up the ark. And they
brought up the ark, and the tabernacle of the congre-
gation, and all the holy vessels that were in the taber-
nacle, these did the priests and the Levites bring up.
Also king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel
that were assembled unto him before the ark, sacrificed
sheep and oxen, which could not be told nor numbered
for multitude. And the priests brought in the ark of
the covenant of the Lord unto its place, to the oracle of
the house, into the most holy place, even under the
wings of the cherubim : for the cherubim spread
forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the
cherubim covered the ark and the staves thereof above.
And they drew out the staves of the ark, that the ends
of the staves were seen from the ark before the oracle ;
but they were not seen without. And there it is unto
this day. There was nothing in the ark save the two
tables which Moses put therein at Horeb, when the
Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel, when
they came out of Egypt.
And it came to pass, when the priests were come out
of the holy place : (for all the priests that were present
were sanctified, and did not then wait by course : also
the Levites which were the singers, all of them of
Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their sons and
their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having
cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end
of the altar, and with them an hundred and twenty
priests sounding with trumpets :) it came even to pass,
as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one
sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord ;
and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets
and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the
Lord, saying: — "For He is good; for His mercy
endureth for ever : " that then the house was filled
with a cloud, even the house of the Lord ; so that the
priests could not stand to minister by reason of the
cloud : for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of
God.
Then said Solomon : — " The Lord hath said that He
would dwell in the thick darkness. But I have built
an house of habitation for Thee, and a place for Thy
296 II. CHRONICLES [vi. 3-16
dwelling" for ever." And the king turned his face, and
blessed the whole congregation of Israel : and all the con-
gregation of Israel stood. And he said : — " Blessed be
the Lord God of Israel, who hath with His hands ful-
filled that which He spake with His mouth to my father
David, saying, Since the day that I brought forth My
people out of the land of Egypt I chose no city among
all the tribes of Israel to build an house in, that My
name might be there ; neither chose I any man to be
a ruler over My people Israel : but I have chosen Jeru-
salem, that My name might be there; and have chosen
David to be over My people Israel. Now it was in
the heart of David my father to build an house for the
name of the Lord God of Israel. But the Lord said
to David my father. Forasmuch as it was in thine heart
to build an house for My name, thou didst well in that
it was in thine heart : notwithstanding- thou shalt not
build the house ; but thy son which shall come forth
out of thy loins, he shall build the house for My name.
The Lord therefore hath performed His word that He
hath spoken : for I am risen up in the room of David
my father, and am set on the throne of Israel, as the
Lord promised, and have built the house for the name
of the Lord God of Israel. And in it have I put the
ark, wherein is the covenant of the Lord, that He made
with the children of Israel."
And he stood before the altar of the Lord in the
presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread
forth his hands : for Solomon had made a brasen
scaffold, of five cubits long", and five cubits broad, and
three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the
court : and upon it he stood, and kneeled down upon
his knees before all the congregation of Israel, and
spread forth his hands toward heaven, and said : — " O
Lord God of Israel, there is no God like Thee in the
heaven, nor in the earth ; which keepest covenant, and
shewest mercy unto Thy servants, that walk before
Thee with all their hearts : Thou which hast kept with
Thy servant David my father that which Thou hast
promised him ; and spakest with Thy mouth, and hast
fulfilled it with Thine hand, as it is this day. Now
therefore, O Lord God of Israel, keep with Thy servant
vi. 17-27J 11. CHRONICLES 297
David my father that which Thou hast promised him,
saying, There shall not fail thee a man in My sight to
sit upon the throne of Israel ; yet so that thy children
take heed to their way to walk in My law, as thou hast
walked before Me. Now then, O Lord God of Israel,
let Thy word be verified, which Thou hast spoken unto
Thy servant David. But will God in very deed dwell
with men on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven
of heavens cannot contain Thee ; how much less this
house which I have built ! Have respect therefore to
the prayer of Thy servant, and to his supplication, O
Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and the prayer
which Thy servant prayeth before Thee : that Thine
eyes may be open upon this house day and night, upon
the place whereof Thou hast said that Thou wouldest
put Thy name there ; to hearken unto the prayer which
Thy servant prayeth toward this place. Hearken
therefore unto the supplications of Thy servant, and of
Thy people Israel, which they shall make toward this
place : hear Thou from Thy dwelling place, even from
heaven ; and when Thou hearest, forgive.
" If a man sin against his neighbour, and an oath be
laid upon him to make him swear, and the oath come
before Thine altar in this house ; then hear Thou from
heaven, and do, and judge Thy servants, by requiting
the wicked, by recompensing his way upon his own
head ; and by justifying the righteous, by giving him
according to his righteousness.
" And if Thy people Israel be put to the worse before
the enemy, because they have sinned against Thee ;
and shall return and confess Thy name, and pray and
make supplication before Thee in this house ; then hear
Thou from the heavens, and forgive the sin of Thy
people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which
Thou gavest to them and to their fathers.
" When the heaven is shut up, and there is no rain,
because they have sinned against Thee ; yet if they
pray toward this place, and confess Thy name, and
turn from their sin, when Thou dost afflict them; then
hear Thou from heaven, and forgive the sin of Thy
servants, and of Thy people Israel, when Thou hast
taught them the good way, wherein they should walk;
L 2
298 II. CHRONICLES [vi. 28-38
and send rain upon Thy land, which Thou hast given
unto Thy people for an inheritance.
" If there be dearth in the land, if there be pestilence,
if there be blasting, or mildew, locusts, or caterpillers ;
if their enemies besiege them in the cities of their land ;
whatsoever sore or whatsoever sickness there be : then
what prayer or what supplication soever shall be made
of any man, or of all Thy people Israel, when every one
shall know his own sore and his own grief, and shall
spread forth his hands in this house : then hear Thou
from heaven Thy dwelling place, and forgive, and
render unto every man according unto all his ways,
whose heart Thou knowest ; (for Thou only knowest
the hearts of the children of men :) that they may fear
Thee, to walk in Thy ways, so long as they live in the
land which Thou gavest unto our fathers.
" Moreover concerning the stranger, which is not of
Thy people Israel, but is come from a far country for
Thy great name's sake, and Thy mighty hand, and Thy
stretched out arm ; if they come and pray in this house ;
then hear Thou from the heavens, even from Thy dwell-
ing place, and do according to all that the stranger
calleth to Thee for; that all people of the earth may
know Thy name, and fear Thee, as doth Thy people
Israel, and may know that this house which I have
built is called by Thy name.
" If Thy people go out to war against their enemies
by the way that Thou shalt send them, and they pray
unto Thee toward this city which Thou hast chosen,
and the house which I have built for Thy name ; then
hear Thou from the heavens their prayer and their
supplication, and maintain their cause.
" If they sin against Thee, (for there is no man which
sinneth not,) and Thou be angry with them, and deliver
them over before their enemies, and they carry them
away captives unto a land far off or near; yet if they
bethink themselves In the land whither they are carried
captive, and turn and pray unto Thee in the land of
their captivity, saying. We have sinned, we have done
amiss, and have dealt wickedly ; if they return to Thee
with all their heart and with all their soul in the land
of their captivity, whither they have carried them cap-
vi. 39— vii. 8] II. CHRONICLES 299
tives, and pray toward their land, which Thou g-avest
unto their fathers, and toward the city which Thou
hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built
for Thy name : then hear Thou from the heavens, even
from Thy dwelling- place, their prayer and their sup-
plications, and maintain their cause, and forg-ive Thy
people which have sinned ag^ainst Thee.
" Now, my God, let, I beseech Thee, Thine eyes be
open, and let Thine ears be attent unto the prayer that
is made in this place. Now therefore arise, O Lord
God, into Thy restingf place, Thou, and the ark of Thy
strength : let Thy priests, O Lord God, be clothed with
salvation, and let Thy saints rejoice in g-oodness. O
Lord God, turn not away the face of Thine anointed :
remember the mercies of David Thy servant."
Now when Solomon had made an end of praying-,
the fire came down from heaven, and consumed the
burnt offering- and the sacrifices ; and the g'lory of the
Lord filled the house. And the priests could not enter
into the house of the Lord, because the g'lory of the
Lord had filled the Lord's house. And when all the
children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the
gflory of the Lord upon the house, they bowed them-
selves w^ith their faces to the ground upon the pave-
ment, and worshipped, and praised the Lord, saying : —
" For He is good ; for His mercy endureth for ever."
Then the king and all the people offered sacrifices
before the Lord. And king Solomon oftered a sacrifice
of twenty and two thousand oxen, and an hundred and
twenty thousand sheep : so the king and all the people
dedicated the house of God. And the priests waited on
their offices : the Levites also with instruments of
music of the Lord, which David the king had made to
praise the Lord, because His mercy endureth for ever,
when David praised by their ministry ; and the priests
sounded trumpets before them, and all Israel stood.
Moreover Solomon hallowed the middle of the court
that was before the house of the Lord : for there he
offered burnt offerings, and the fat of the peace offer-
ings, because the brasen altar which Solomon had
made was not able to receive the burnt offerings, and
the meal offerings, and the fat. Also at the same time
300 II. CHRONICLES [vii. 9-21
Solomon kept the feast seven days, and all Israel with
him, a very great cong-reg-ation, from the entering m
of Hamath unto the river of Egypt. And in the eighth
day they made a solemn assembly : for they kept the
dedication of the altar seven days, and the feast seven
days. And on the three and twentieth day of the
seventh month he sent the people away into their tents,
glad and merry in heart for the goodness that the Lord
had shewed unto David, and to Solomon, and to Israel
His people. Thus Solomon finished the house of the
Lord, and the king's house : and all that came into
Solomon's heart to make in the house of the Lord, and
in his own house, he prosperously effected.
And the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and
said unto him : — " I have heard thy prayer, and have
chosen this place to Myself for an house of sacrifice.
If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I corn-
mand the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pesti-
lence among My people; if My people, which are
called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray,
and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways;
then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin,
and will heal their land. Now Mine eyes shall be open,
and Mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in
this place. For now have I chosen and sanctified this
house, that My name may be there for ever : and Mine
eyes and Mine heart shall be there perpetually. And
as for thee, if thou wilt walk before Me, as David thy
father walked, and do according to all that I have
commanded thee, and shalt observe My statutes and
My judgments ; then will I stablish the throne of thy
kingdom, according as I have covenanted with David
thy father, saying. There shall not fail thee a man to
be ruler in Israel. But if ye turn away, and forsake
My statutes, and My commandments, which I have set
before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and
worship them ; then will I pluck them up by the roots
out of My land which I have given them ; and this
house, which I have sanctified for My name, will I
cast out of My sight, and will make it to be a proverb
and a byword among all nations. And this house,
which is high, shall be an astonishment to every one
vii. 22— viii. 13] II. CHRONICLES 301
that passeth by it ; so that he shall say, Why hath the
Lord done thus unto this land, and unto this house?
And it shall be answered, Because they forsook the
Lord God of their fathers, which brought them forth
out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other g'ods,
and worshipped them, and served them : therefore hath
He broug-ht all this evil upon them."
And it came to pass at the end of twenty years,
wherein Solomon had built the house of the Lord, and
his own house, that the cities which Hiram had restored
to Solomon, Solomon built them, and caused the
children of Israel to dwell there. And Solomon went
to Hamath-zobah, and prevailed against it. And he
built Tadmor in the wilderness, and all the store cities,
which he built in Hamath. Also he built Beth-horon
the upper, and Beth-horon the nether, fenced cities,
with walls, gates, and bars ; and Baalath, and all the
store cities that Solomon had, and all the chariot cities,
and the cities of the horsemen, and all that Solomon
desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and
throughout all the land of his dominion.
As for all the people that were left of the Hittites,
and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites,
and the Jebusites, which were not of Israel, but of their
children, who were left after them in the land, whom
the children of Israel consumed not, them did Solomon
make to pay tribute until this day. But of the children
of Israel did Solomon make no servants for his work ;
but they were men of war, and chief of his captains,
and captains of his chariots and horsemen. And these
were the chief of king Solomon's officers, even two
hundred and fifty, that bare rule over the people.
And Solomon brought up the daughter of Pharaoh
out of the city of David unto the house that he had
built for her: for he said : — " My wife shall not dwell
in the house of David king of Israel, because the places
are holy, whereunto the ark of the Lord hath come."
Then Solomon offered burnt offerings unto the Lord
on the altar of the Lord, which he had built before the
porch, even after a certain rate every day, offering
according to the commandment of Moses, on the sab-
baths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts,
302 II. CHRONICLES [viii. 14— ix. 7
three times in the year, even in the feast of unleavened
bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of
tabernacles. And he appointed, according- to the order
of David his father, the courses of the priests to their
service, and the Levites to their charges, to praise and
minister before the priests, as the duty of every day
required : the porters also by their courses at every
gate : for so had David the man of God commanded.
And they departed not from the commandment of the
king unto the priests and Levites concerning any
matter, or concerning the treasures. Now all the work
of Solomon was prepared unto the day of the founda-
tion of the house of the Lord, and until it was finished.
So the house of the Lord was perfected.
Then went Solomon to Ezion-geber, and to Eloth, at
the sea side in the land of Edom. And Hiram sent him
by the hands of his servants ships, and servants that
had knowledge of the sea ; and they went with the
servants of Solomon to Ophir, and took thence four
hundred and fifty talents of gold, and brought them to
king Solomon.
And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of
Solomon, she came to prove Solomon with hard ques-
tions at Jerusalem, with a very great company, and
camels that bare spices, and gold in abundance, and
precious stones : and when she was come to Solomon,
she communed with him of all that was in her heart.
And Solomon told her all her questions : and there was
nothing hid from Solomon which he told her not. And
when the queen of Sheba had seen the wisdom of Solo-
mon, and the house that he had built, and the meat of
his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the
attendance of his ministers, and their apparel ; his
cupbearers also, and their apparel; and his ascent by
which he went up into the house of the Lord ; there
was no more spirit in her. And she said to the king :
— " It was a true report which I heard in mine own
land of thine acts, and of thy wisdom : howbeit I be-
lieved not their words, until I came, and mine eyes had
seen it : and, behold, the one half of the greatness of
thy wisdom was not told me : for thou exceedest the
fame that I heard. Happy are thy men, and happy are
X. 8^21] II. CHRONICLES 303
these thy servants, which stand continually before thee,
and hear thy wisdom. Blessed be the Lord thy God,
which delighted in thee to set thee on His throne, to
be king for the Lord thy God : because thy God loved
Israel, to establish them for ever, therefore niade He
thee king over them, to do judgment and justice."
And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents
of gold, and of spices great abundance, and precious
stones : neither was there anv such spice as the queen
of Sheba gave king Solomon. And the servants also
of Hiram, and the servants of Solomon, which brought
gold from Ophir, brought algum trees and precious
stones. And the king made of the algum trees terraces
to the house of the Lord, and to the king's palace, and
harps and psalteries for singers : and there were none
such seen before in the land of Judah. And king Solo-
mon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatso-
ever she asked, beside that which she had brought unto
the king. So she turned, and went away to her own
land, she and her servants.
Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one
year was six hundred and threescore and six talents of
gold ; beside that which chapmen and merchants
brought. And all the kings of Arabia and governors
of the country brought gold and silver to Solomon.
And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten
gold : six hundred shekels of beaten gold went to one
target. And three hundred shields made he of beaten
gold : three hundred shekels of gold went to one shield.
And the king put them in the house of the forest of
Lebanon. Moreover the king made a great throne of
ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. And there were
six steps to the throne, with a footstool of gold, which
were fastened to the throne, and stays on each side of
the sitting place, and two lions standing by the stays :
and twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the
other upon the six steps. There was not the like made
in any kingdom. And all the drinking vessels of king
Solomon were of gold, and all the vessels of the house
of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold : none were
of silver ; it was not any thing accounted of in the days
of Solomon. For the king's ships went to Tarshish
304 11. CHRONICLES [ix. 22— x. 6
with the servants of Hiram : every three years once
came the ships of Tarshish bringing gold, and silver,
ivory, and apes, and peacocks. And king Solomon
passed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.
And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of
Solomon, to hear his wisdom, that God had put in his
heart. And they brought every man his present, vessels
of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, harness, and
spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. And
Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and
chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen ; whom he
bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jeru-
salem. And he reigned over all the kings from the
river even unto the land of the Philistines, and to the
border of Egypt. And the king made silver in Jeru-
salem as stones, and cedar trees made he as the syco-
more trees that are in the low plains in abundance.
And they brought unto Solomon horses out of Egypt,
and out of all lands.
Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, first and last,
are they not written in the book of Nathan the prophet,
and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the
visions of Iddo the seer against Jeroboam the son of
Nebat? And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all
Israel forty years. And Solomon slept with his fathers,
and he was buried in the city of David his father : and
Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
And Rehoboam went to Shechem : for to Shechem
were all Israel come to make him king. And it came
to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, v/ho was in
Egypt, whither he had fled from the presence of Solo-
mon the king, heard it, that Jeroboam returned out of
Egypt. And they sent and called him. So Jeroboam
and all Israel came and spake to Rehoboam, saying :
— " Thy father made our yoke grievous : now there-
fore ease thou somewhat the grievous servitude of thy
father, and his heavy yoke that he put upon us, and
we will serve thee. " And he said unto them : — " Come
again unto me after three days." And the people
departed. And king Rehoboam took counsel with the
old men that had stood before Solomon his father while
he yet lived, saying: — " What counsel give ye me to
X. 7-i8] 11. CHRONICLES 305
return answer to this people?" And they spake unto
him, saying: — "If thou be kind to this people, and
please them, and speak good words to them, they will
be thy servants for ever." But he forsook the counsel
which the old men gave him, and took counsel with
the young men that were brought up with him, that
stood before him. And he said unto them:- — "What
advice give ye that we may return answer to this people,
which have spoken to me, saying, Ease somewhat the
3'oke that thy father did put upon us?" And the young
men that were brought up with him spake unto him,
saying: — "Thus shalt thou answer the people that
spake unto thee, saying. Thy father made our yoke
heavy, but make thou it somewhat lighter for us ; thus
shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be
thicker than my father's loins. For whereas my father
put a heavy yoke upon you, I will put more to your
yoke : my father chastised you with whips, but I will
chastise you with scorpions."
So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam
on the third day, as the king bade, saying :—" Come
again to me on the third day." And the king answered
them roughly ; and king Rehoboam forsook the counsel
of the old men, and answered them after the advice of
the young men, saying : — " My father made your yoke
heavy, but I will add thereto : my father chastised you
with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions."
So the king hearkened not unto the people : for the
cause was of God, that the Lord might perform His
word, which He spake by the hand of Ahijah the Shilon-
ite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat. And when all Israel
saw that the king would not hearken unto them, the
people answered the king, saying: — "What portion
have we in David? and we have none inheritance in the
son of Jesse : every man to your tents, O Israel : and
now, David, see to thine own house." So all Israel
went to their tents. But as for the children of Israel
that dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over
them. Then king ReholDoam sent Hadoram that was
over the tribute ; and the children of Israel stoned him
with stones, that he died. But king Rehoboam made
speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem.
3o6 11. CHRONICLES [x. 19— xi. 18
And Israel rebelled against the house of David unto
this day.
And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he
g-athered of the house of Judah and Benjamin an
hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, which
were warriors, to fight against Israel, that he might
bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam. But the word
of the Lord came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying :
— " Speak unto Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of
Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, saying,
Thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not go up, nor fight
against your brethren : return every man to his house :
for this thing is done of Me." And they obeyed the
words of the Lord, and returned from going against
Jeroboam.
And Rehoboam dwelt in Jerusalem, and built cities
for defence in Judah. He built even Beth-lehem, and
Etam, and Tekoa, and Beth-zur, and Shoco, and Adul-
1am, and Gath, and Mareshah, and Ziph, and Adoraim,
and Lachish, and Azekah, and Zorah, and Aijalon, and
Hebron, which are in Judah and in Benjamin fenced
cities. And he fortified the strong holds, and put cap-
tains in them, and store of victual, and of oil and wine.
And in every several city he put shields and spears, and
made them exceeding strong, having Judah and Benja-
min on his side.
And the priests and the Levites that were in all Israel
resorted to him out of all their coasts. For the Levites
left their suburbs and their possession, and came to
Judah and Jerusalem : for Jeroboam and his sons had
cast them off from executing the priest's office unto
the Lord : and he ordained him priests for the high
places, and for the he goats, and for the calves which
he had made. And after them out of all the tribes of
Israel such as set their hearts to seek the Lord God
of Israel came to Jerusalem, to sacrifice unto the Lord
God of their fathers. So they strengthened the king-
dom of Judah, and made Rehoboam the son of Solo-
mon strong, three years : for three years they walked
in the way of David and Solomon.
And Rehoboam took him Mahalath the daughter of
Jerimoth the son of David to wife, and Abihail the
xi. 19— xii. 9] II. CHRONICLES 30?
daughter of Eliab the son of Jesse; which bare him
children; Jeush, and Shamariah, and Zaham.- And
after her he took Maachah the daughter of Absalom;
which bare him Abijah, and Attai, and Ziza, and Shelo-
mith. And Rehoboam loved Maachah the daughter of
Absalom above all his wives and his concubines : (for
he took eighteen wives, and threescore concubines; and
begat twenty and eight sons, and threescore daughters.)
And Rehoboam made Abijah the son of Maachah the
chief, to be ruler among his brethren : for he thought
to make him king. And he dealt wisely, and dispersed
of all his children throughout all the countries of Judah
and Benjamin, unto every fenced city : and he gave
them victual in abundance. And he desired many
wives.
And it came to pass, when Rehoboam had established
the kingdom, and had strengthened himself, he forsook
the law of the Lord, and all Israel with him. And it
came to pass, that in the fifth year of king Rehoboam
Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem,
because they had transgressed against the Lord, with
twelve hundred chariots, and threescore thousand horse-
men : and the people were without number that came
with him out of Egypt ; the Lubim, the Sukkiim, and the
Ethiopians. And he took the fenced cities which per-
tained to Judah, and came to Jerusalem.
Then came Shemaiah the prophet to Rehoboam, and
to the princes of Judah, that were gathered together
to Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said unto them :
— "Thus saith the Lord, Ye have forsaken Me, and
therefore have I also left you in the hand of Shishak."
Whereupon the princes of Israel and the king humbled
themselves; and they said: — "The Lord is right-
eous." And when the Lord saw that they humbled
• themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah,
saying: — "They have humbled themselves; therefore
I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some
deliverance ; and My wrath shall not be poured out
upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. Neverthe-
less they shall be his servants ; that they may know My
service, and the service of the kingdoms of the coun-
tries." So Shishak king of Egypt came up against
3o8 11. CHRONICLES [xii. lo— xiii. 6
Jerusalem, and took away the treasures of the house of
the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house; he
took all : he carried away also the shields of gold which
Solomon had made. Instead of which king" Rehoboam
made shields of brass, and committed them to the hands
of the chief of the guard, that kept the entrance of
the king's house. And when the king entered into
the house of the Lord, the guard came and fetched
them, and brought them again into the guard chamber.
And when he humbled himself, the wrath of the Lord
turned from him, that He would not destroy him alto-
gether : and also in Judah things went well.
So king Rehoboam strengthened himself in Jerusa-
lem, and reigned : for Rehoboam was one and forty
years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seven-
teen years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord had
chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put His name-
there. And his mother's nam.e was Naamah an
Ammonitess. And he did evil, because he prepared
not his heart to seek the Lord. Now the acts of Reho-
boam, first and last, are they not written in the book
of Shemaiah the prophet, and of Iddo the seer con-
cerning genealogies? And there were wars between
Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually. And Rehoboam
slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of
David : and Abijah his son reigned in his stead.
Now in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam began
Abijah to reign over Judah. He reigned three years in
Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Michaiah the
daughter of Uriel of Gibeah. And there was war be-
tween Abijah and Jeroboam. And Abijah set the battle
in array with an army of valiant men of war, even four
hundred thousand chosen men : Jeroboam also set the
battle in array against him with eight hundred thou-
sand chosen men, being mighty men of valour.
And Abijah stood up upon mount Zemaraim, which is
in the hill covmtry of Ephraim, and said : — " Hear me,
thou Jeroboam, and all Israel; ought ye not to know
that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingdom over
Israel to David for ever, even to him and to his sons
by a covenant of salt? Yet Jeroboam the son of Ne-
bat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, is risen
xiii. 7-18] II. CHRONICLES 3^9
up, and hath rebelled against his lord. And there are
gathered unto him vain men, the children of Belial,
and have strengthened themselves against Rehoboam
the son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was young and
tenderhearted, and could not withstand them. And
now ye think to withstand the kingdom of the Lord in
the hand of the sons of David ; and ye be a great mul-
titude, and there are with you golden calves, which
Jeroboam made you for gods. Have ye not cast out
the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the
Levites, and have made you priests after the manner of
the nations of other lands? so that whosoever cometh
to consecrate himself with a young bullock and seven
rams, the same may be a priest of them that are no
gods. But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we
have not forsaken Him ; and the priests, which minis-
ter unto the Lord, are the sons of Aaron, and the
Levites wait upon their business : and they burn unto
the Lord every morning and every evening burnt sacri-
fices and sweet incense : the shewbread also set they
in order upon the pure table; and the candlestick of
gold with the lamps thereof, to burn every evening :
for we keep the charge of the Lord our God ; but ye
have forsaken Him. And, behold, God Himself is with
us for our Captain, and His priests with sounding
trumpets to cry alarm against you. O children of
Israel, fight ye not against the Lord God of your
fathers; for ye shall not prosper."
But Jeroboam caused an ambushment to come about
behind them : so they Vi/ere before Judah, and the am-
bushment was behind them. And when Judah looked
back, behold, the battle was before and behind : and
they cried unto the Lord, and the priests sounded with
the trumpets. Then the men of Judah gave a shout :
and as the men of Judah shouted, it came to pass, that
God smote Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and
Judah. And the children of Israel fled before Judah :
and God delivered them into their hand. And Abijah
and his people slew them with a great slaughter : so
there fell down slain of Israel five hundred thousand
chosen men. Thus the children of Israel were brought
under at that time, and the children of Judah prevailed,
310 II. CHRONICLES [xiii. 19— xiv. n
because they relied upon the Lord God of their fathers.
And Abijah pursued after Jeroboam, and took cities
from him, Beth-el with the towns thereof, and Jeshanah
with the towns thereof, and Ephrain with the towns
thereof. Neither did Jeroboam recover strength again
in the days of Abijah : and the Lord struck him, and
he died. But Abijah waxed mighty, and married four-
teen wives, and begat twenty and two sons, and six-
teen daughters. And the rest of the acts of Abijah,
and his ways, and his sayings, are written in the story
of the prophet Iddo.
So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him
in the city of David : and Asa his son reigned in his
stead. In his days the land was quiet ten years. And
Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of
the Lord his God : for he took away the altars of the
strange gods, and the high places, and brake down the
images, and cut down the Asherim : and commanded
Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers, and to do
the law and the commandment. Also he took away out
of all the cities of Judah the high places and the images :
and the kingdom was quiet before him. And he built
fenced cities in Judah : for the land had rest, and he
had no war in those years ; because the Lord had given
him rest. Therefore he said unto Judah: — "Let us
build these cities, and make about them walls, and
towers, gates, and bars, while the land is yet before us ;
because we have sought the Lord our God, we have
sought Him, and He hath given us rest on every side."
So they built and prospered.
And Asa had an army of men that bare targets and
spears, out of Judah three hundred thousand ; and out
of Benjamin, that bare shields and drew bows, two
hundred and fourscore thousand : all these were mighty
men of valour. And there came out against them
Zerah the Ethiopian with an host of a thousand thou-
sand, and three hundred chariots ; and came unto
Mareshah. Then Asa went out against him, and they
set the battle in array in the valley of Zephathah at
Mareshah. And Asa cried unto the Lord his God, and
said : — " Lord, it is nothing with Thee to help, whether
with many, or with them that have no power : help us,
xiv. 12— XV. 9] 11. CHRONICLES 311
O Lord our God ; for we rest on Thee, and in Thy name
we go against this muhitude. O Lord, Thou art our
God; let not man prevail against Thee." So the Lord
smote the Ethiopians before Asa, and before Judah ;
and the Ethiopians fled. And Asa and the people that
were with him pursued them unto Gerar : and the
Ethiopians were overthrown, that they could not
recover themselves ; for they were destroyed before the
Lord, and before His host; and they carried away very
much spoil. And they smote all the cities round about
Gerar ; for the fear of the Lord came upon them : and
they spoiled all the cities ; for there was exceeding
much spoil in them. They smote also the tents of
cattle, and carried away sheep and camels in abundance,
and returned to Jerusalem.
And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of
Oded : and he went out to meet Asa, and said unto
him : — " Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benja-
min : the Lord is with you, while ye be with Him ;
and if ye seek Him, He will be found of you ; but
if ye forsake Him, He will forsake you. Now for
a long season Israel hath been without the true God,
and without a teaching priest, and without law. But
when they in their trouble did turn unto the Lord God
of Israel, and sought Him, He was found of them.
And in those times there was no peace to him that went
out, nor to him that came in, but great vexations were
upon all the inhabitants of the countries. And nation
was destroyed of nation, and city of city : for God did
vex them with all adversity. Be ye strong therefore,
and let not your hands be weak : for your work shall
be rewarded. "
And when Asa heard these words, and the prophecy
of Oded the prophet, he took courage, and put away the
abominations out of all the land of Judah and Benja-
min, and out of the cities which he had taken from
the hill country of Ephraim, and renewed the altar of
the Lord, that was before the porch of the Lord. And
he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the strangers
with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of
Simeon : for they fell to him out of Israel in abund-
ance, when they saw that the Lord his God was with
312 II. CHRONICLES [xv. lo— xvi. 5
him. So they gathered themselves tog-ether at Jeru-
salem in the third month, in the fifteenth year of the
reign of Asa. And they offered unto the Lord the same
time, of the spoil which they had brought, seven
hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep. And they
entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their
fathers with all their heart and with all their soul ; that
whosoever would not seek the Lord God of Israel should
be put to death, whether small or great, whether man
or woman. And they sware unto the Lord with a loud
voice, and with shouting-, and with trumpets, and with
cornets. And all Judah rejoiced at the oath : for they
had sworn with all their heart, and sought Him with
their whole desire ; and He was found of them : and
the Lord gave them rest round about.
And also concerning Maachah the mother of Asa the
king, he removed her from being queen, because she
had made a shameful thing as an Asherah : and Asa
cut down the shameful thing, and stamped it, and burnt
it at the brook Kidron. But the high places were not
taken away out of Israel : nevertheless the heart of
Asa was perfect all his days. And he brought into the
house of God the things that his father had dedicated,
and that he himself had dedicated, silver, and gold, and
vessels. And there was no more war unto the five and
thirtieth year of the reign of Asa.
In the six and thirtieth year of the reign of Asa
Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah, and built
Ramah, to the intent that he might let none go out
or come in to Asa king of Judah. Then Asa brought
out silver and gold out of the treasures of the house
of the Lord and of the king's house, and sent to Ben-
hadad king of Syria, that dwelt at Damascus, saying :
— " There is a league between me and thee, as there
was between my father and thy father : behold, I have
sent thee silver and gold ; go, break thy league with
Baasha king of Israel, that he may depart from me."
And Ben-hadad hearkened unto king Asa, and sent the
captains of his armies against the cities of Israel ; and
they smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-maim, and all the
store cities of Naphtali. And it came to pass, when
Baasha heard it, that he left off building of Ramah, and
xvi. 6— xvii. 4] 11. CHRONICLES 313
let his work cease. Then Asa the king- took all Judah ;
and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the
timber thereof, wherewith Baasha was building ; and
he built therewith Geba and Mizpah.
And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king
of Judah, and said unto him : — " Because thou hast
relied on the king of Syria, and not relied oh the Lord
thy God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped
out of thine hand. Were not the Ethiopians and the
Lubim a huge host, with very many chariots and horse-
men? yet, because thou didst rely on the Lord, He
delivered them into thine hand. For the eyes of the
Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to
shew Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart
is perfect toward Him. Herein thou hast done fool-
ishly : therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. "
Then Asa was wroth with the seer, and put him in a
prison house ; for he was in a rage with him because
of this thing. And Asa oppressed some of the people
the same time.
And, behold, the acts of Asa, first and last, lo, they
are written in the book of the kings of Judah and
Israel. And Asa in the thirty and ninth year of his
reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was
exceeding great : yet in his disease he sought not to
the Lord, but to the physicians. And Asa slept with his
fathers, and died in the one and fortieth year of his
reign. And they buried him in his own sepulchres,
which he had made for himself in the city of David,
and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet
odours and divers kinds of spices prepared by the
apothecaries' art : and they made a very great burning
for him.
And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead, and
strengthened himself against Israel. And he placed
forces in all the fenced cities of Judah, and set gar-
risons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of
Ephraim, which Asa his father had taken. And the
Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the
first ways of his father David, and sought not unto
the Baalim ; but sought to the Lord God of his father,
and walked in His commandments, and not after the
314 11. CHRONICLES [xvii. 5-19
doing's of Israel. Therefore the Lord stablished the
kingdom in his hand ; and all Judah brought to Jeho-
shaphat presents ; and he had riches and honour in
abundance. And his heart was lifted up in the ways
of the Lord : moreover he took away the high places
and the Asherim out of Judah. Also in the third year
of his reign he sent to his princes, even to Ben-hail,
and to Obadiah, and to Zechariah, and to Nethaneel,
and to Michaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah. And
with them he sent Levites, even Shemaiah, and Netha-
niah, and Zebadiah, and Asahel, and Shemiramoth, and
Jehonathan, and Adonijah, and Tobijah, and Tob-adoni-
jah, Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram,
priests. And they taught in Judah, and had the book
of the law of the Lord with them, and went about
throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught the
people.
And the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms
of the lands that were round about Judah, so that they
made no war against Jehoshaphat. Also some of the
Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents, and tribute
silver ; and the Arabians brought him flocks, seven
thousand and seven hundred rams, and seven thousand
and seven hundred he goats. And Jehoshaphat waxed
great exceedingly ; and he built in Judah castles, and
cities of store. And he had many works in the cities
of Judah : and the men of war, mighty men of valour,
were in Jerusalem. And these are the numbers of them
according to the house of their fathers : Of Judah, the
captains of thousands ; Adnah the chief, and with him
mighty men of valour three hundred thousand. And
next to him was Jehohanan the captain, and with him
two hundred and fourscore thousand. And next him
was Amasiah the son of Zichri, who willingly offered
himself unto the Lord ; and with him two hundred
thousand mighty men of valour. And of Benjamin ;
Eliada a mighty man of valour, and with him armed
men with bow and shield two hundred thousand. And
next him was Jehozabad, and with him an hundred and
fourscore thousand ready prepared for the war. These
waited on the king, beside those whom the king put
in the fenced cities throughout all Judah.
xviii. 1-14] II. CHRONICLES 315
Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abund-
ance, and joined affinity with Ahab. And after certain
years he went down to Ahab to Samaria. And Ahab
killed sheep and oxen for him in abundance, and for
the people that he had with him, and persuaded him
to g-o up with him to Ramoth-gilead. And Ahab king-
of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat king of Judah : — " Wilt
thou go with me to Ramoth-gilead?" And he answered
him : — ' ' I am as thou art, and my people as thy people ;
and we will be with thee in the war." And Jehosha-
phat said unto the king of Israel : — " Enquire, I pray
thee, at the word of the Lord to-day." Therefore the
king- of Israel g-athered together of prophets four
hundred men, and said unto them : — " Shall we go to
Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear?" And
they said: — " Go up; for God will deliver it into the
king's hand." But Jehoshaphat said : — " Is there not
here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we might
enquire of him?" And the king of Israel said unto
Jehoshaphat: — "There is yet one man, by whom we
may enquire of the Lord : but I hate him ; for he never
prophesied good unto me, but always evil : the same
is Micaiah the son of Imla. " And Jehoshaphat said:
— " Let not the king say so." And the king of Israel
called for one of his officers, and said : — " Fetch quickly
Micaiah the son of Imla."
And the king- of Israel and Jehoshaphat king- of Judah
sat either of them on his throne, clothed in their robes,
and they sat in a void place at the entering in of the
gate of Samaria ; and all the prophets prophesied be-
fore them. And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah had
made him horns of iron, and said: — "Thus saith the
Lord, With these thou shalt push Syria until they be
consumed." And all the prophets prophesied so,
saying : — " Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper : for
the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king."
And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spake to
him, saying: — "Behold, the words of the prophets
declare good to the king with one assent ; let thy word
therefore, I pray thee, be hke one of theirs, and speak
thou good." And Micaiah said : — " As the Lord liveth,
even what my God saith, that will I speak." And when
3i6 II. CHRONICLES [xviii. 15-27
he was come to the king-, the kingf said unto him : — •
" Mlcaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or
shall I forbear?" And he said: — "Go ye up, and
prosper, and they shall be delivered into your hand."
And the king said to him : — " How many times shall
I adjure thee that thou say nothing- but the truth to
me in the name of the Lord?" Then he said : — " I did
see all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as she^p
that have no shepherd : and the Lord said, These have
no master ; let them return therefore every man to his
house in peace." And the king of Israel said to Jeho-
shaphat : — "Did I not tell thee that he would not
prophesy good unto me, but evil?" Again he said : —
' ' Therefore hear the word of the Lord ; I saw the Lord
sitting upon His throne, and all the host of heaven
standing on His right hand and on His left. And the
Lord said. Who shall entice Ahab king of Israel, that
he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one
spake saying after this manner, and another saying
after that manner. Then there came out a spirit, and
stood before the Lord, and said, I will entice him. And
the Lord said unto him. Wherewith? And he said, I
will go out, and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his
prophets. And the Lord said. Thou shalt entice him,
and thou shalt also prevail : go out, and do even so.
Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit
in the mouth of these thy prophets, and the Lord hath
spoken evil against thee."
Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near, and
smote Micaiah upon the cheek, and said :• — " Which
way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak unto
thee?" And Micaiah said: — " Behold, thou shalt see
on that day when thou shalt go into an inner chamber
to hide thyself." Then the king of Israel said: —
" Take ye Micaiah, and carry him back to Amon the
governor of the city, and to Joash the king's son; and
say. Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the prison.
and feed him with bread of affliction and with water
of affliction, until I return in peace." And Micaiah
said: — "If thou certainly return in peace, then hath
not the Lord spoken by me." And he said : — " Hear-
ken, all ye people. "
i
xviii. 28— xix. 7] II. CHRONICLES 317
So the king- of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of
Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead. And the king of
Israel said unto Jehoshaphat: — "I will disguise my-
self, and will go to the battle; but put thou on thy
robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself; and
they went to the battle. Now the king of Syria had
commanded the captains of the chariots that were with
him, saying : — " Fight ye not with small or great, save
only with the king of Israel." And it came to pass,
when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that
they said : — " It is the king of Israel." Therefore they
compassed about him to fight : but Jehoshaphat cried
out, and the Lord helped him ; and God moved them to
depart from him. For it came to pass, that, when the
captains of the chariots perceived that it was not the
king of Israel, they turned back again from pursuing
him. And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and
smote the king of Israel between the joints of the har-
ness : therefore he said to his chariot man: — "Turn
thine hand, that thou mayest carry me out of the host;
for I am wounded." And the battle increased that day :
howbeit the king of Israel stayed himself up in his
chariot against the Syrians until the even : and about
the time of the sun going down he died.
And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his
house in peace to Jerusalem. And Jehu the son of
Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king
Jehoshaphat: — " Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and
love them that hate the Lord ? therefore is wrath upon
thee from before the Lord. Nevertheless there are good
things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the
Asherim out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart
to seek God. "
And Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem : and he went
out again through the people from Beer-sheba to the
hill country of Ephraim, and brought them back unto
the Lord God of their fathers. And he set judges in
the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city
by city, and said to the judges : — " Take heed what ye
do : for ye judge not for man, but for the Lord, who is
with you in the judgment. Wherefore now let the fear
of the Lord be upon you ; take heed and do it : for there
31 8 II. CHRONICLES [xix. 8— xx. 9
is no iniquity with the Lord our .God, nor respect of
persons, nor taking of gifts." Moreover in Jerusalem
did Jehoshaphat set of the Levites, and the priests, and
of the chief of the fathers of Israel, for the judgment of
the Lord, and for controversies, when they returned to
Jerusalem. And he charged them, saying: — "Thus
shall ye do in the fear of the Lord, faithfully, and with
a perfect heart. And what cause soever shall come to
you of your brethren that dwell in their cities, between
blood and blood, between law and commandment,
statutes and judgments, ye shall even warn them that
they trespass not against the Lord, and so wrath come
upon you, and upon your brethren : this do, and ye shall
not trespass. And, behold, Amariah the chief priest is
over you in all matters of the Lord ; and Zebediah the
son of Ishmael, the ruler of the house of Judah, for all
the king's matters : also the Levites shall be officers
before you. Deal courageously, and the Lord shall be
with the good."
It came to pass after this also, that the children of
Moab, and the children of Ammon, and with them other
beside the Ammonites, came against Jehoshaphat to
battle. Then there came some that told Jehoshaphat,
saying : — " There cometh a great multitude against
thee from beyond the sea on this side Syria ; and,
behold, they be in Hazazon-tamar, which is En-gedi. "
And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the
Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. And
Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the
Lord : even out of all the cities of Judah they came to
seek the Lord.
And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah
and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new
court, and said : — " O Lord God of our fathers, art not
Thou God in heaven? and rulest not Thou over all the
kingdoms of the heathen? and in Thine hand is there not
power and might, so that none is able to withstand
Thee? art not Thou our God, who didst drive out the
inhabitants of this land before Thy people Israel, and
gavest it to the seed of Abraham Thy friend for ever?
And they dwelt therein, and have built Thee a sanctuary
therein for Thy name, saying, If, when evil cometh
XX. 10-21] II. CHRONICLES 319
upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or
famine, we stand before this house, and in Thy presence,
(for Thy name is in this house,) and cry unto Thee in
our affliction, then Thou wilt hear and help. And now,
behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount
Seir, whom Thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when
they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned
from them, and destroyed them not; behold, I say, how
they reward us, to come to cast us out of Thy posses-
sion, which Thou hast given us to inherit. O our God,
wilt Thou not judge them? for we have no might against
this great company that cometh against us ; neither
know we what to do : but our eyes are upon Thee."
And all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little
ones, their wives, and their children. Then upon
Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the
son of leiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons
of Asaph, came the Spirit of the Lord in the midst of
the congregation; and he said: — "Hearken ye, all
Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king
Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not
afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude ;
for the battle is not yours, but God's. To-morrow go
ye down against them : behold, they come up by the
cliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them at the end of the
brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel. Ye shall not
need to fight in this battle : set yourselves, stand ye
still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O
Judah and Jerusalem : fear not, nor be dismayed ; to-
morrow go out against them : for the Lord will be with
you." And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face
to the ground : and all Judah and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem fell before the Lord, worshipping the Lord.
And the Levites, of the children of the Kohathites, and
of the children of the Korhites, stood up to praise the
Lord God of Israel with a loud voice on high.
And they rose early in the morning, and went forth
into the wilderness of Tekoa : and as they went forth,
Jehoshaphat stood and said :— " Hear me, O Judah,
and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem ; Believe in the Lord
your God, so shall ye be established; believe His
prophets, so shall ye prosper." And when he had con-
320 II. CHRONICLES [xx. 22-33
suited with the people, he appointed singers unto the
Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as
they went out before the army, and to say : — " Praise
the Lord; for His mercy endureth for ever," And
when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set
ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab,
and mount Seir, which were come against Judah ; and
they were smitten. For the children of Ammon and
Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir,
utterly to slay and destroy them : and when they had
made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped
to destroy another. And when Judah came toward the
watch 'tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the
multitude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to
the earth, and none escaped. And when Jehoshaphat
and his people came to take 'away the spoil of them,
they found among them in abundance both riches with
the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they
stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry
away : and they were three days in gathering of the
spoil, it was so much. And on the fourth day they
assembled themselves in the valley of Berachah ; for
there they blessed the Lord : therefore the name of the
same place was called. The valley of Berachah, unto
this day. Then they returned, every man of Judah and
Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat in the forefront of them, to
go again to Jerusalem with joy ; for the Lord had made
them to rejoice over their enemies. And they came to
Jerusalem with psalteries and harps and trumpets unto
the house of the Lord. And the fear of God was on all
the kingdoms of those countries, when they had heard
that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel. So
the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet : for his God gave
him rest round about.
And Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah : he was thirty
and five years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his
mother's name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. And
he walked in the way of Asa his father, and departed
not from it, doing that which was right in the sight of
the Lord. Howbeit the high places were not taken
away : for as yet the people had not prepared their
XX. 34— xxi. 10] II. CHRONICLES 321
hearts unto the God of their fathers. Now the rest of
the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last, behold, they are
written in the book of Jehu the son of Hanani, who is
mentioned in the book of the kings of Israel.
And after this did Jehoshaphat king of Judah join
himself with Ahaziah king of Israel, who did very
wickedly : and he joined himself with him to make ships
to go to Tarshish : and they made the ships in Ezion-
gaber. Then Eliezer the son of Dodavah of Mareshah
prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying :—" Because
thou hast joined thyself with Ahaziah, the Lord hath
broken thy works." And the ships were broken, that
they were not able to go to Tarshish.
Now Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was
buried with his fathers in the city of David. And
Jehoram his son reigned in his stead. And he had
brethren the sons of Jehoshaphat, Azariah, and Jehiel,
and Zechariah, and Azariah, and Michael, and She-
phatiah : all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king
of Israel. And their father gave them great gifts of
silver, and of gold, and of precious things, with fenced
cities in Judah : but the kingdom gave he to Jehoram ;
because he was the firstborn.
Now when Jehoram was risen up to the kingdom of
his father, he strengthened himself, and slew all his
brethren with the sword, and divers also of the princes
of Israel. Jehoram was thirty and two years old when
he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jeru-
salem. And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel,
like as did the house of Ahab : for he had the daughter
of Ahab to wife : and he wrought that which was evil
in the eyes of the Lord. Howbeit the Lord would not
destroy the house of David, because of the covenant that
He had made with David, and as He promised to give
a light to him and to his sons for ever.
In his days the Edomites revolted from under the
dominion of Judah, and made themselves a king. Then
Jehoram went forth with his princes, and all his chariots
with him : and he rose up by night, and smote the
Edomites which compassed him in, and the captains of
the chariots. So the Edomites revolted from under the
hand of Judah unto this day. The same time also did
VOL. II. M
322 II. CHRONICLES [xxi. ii— xxii. 2
Libnah revolt from under his hand ; because he had for-
saken the Lord God of his fathers. Moreover he made
high places in the mountains of Judah, and caused the
inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication, and
compelled Judah thereto.
And there came a writing to him from Elijah the
prophet, saying : — " Thus saith the Lord God of David
thy father, Because thou hast not walked in the ways of
Jehoshaphat thy father, nor in the ways of Asa king of
Judah, but hast walked in the way of the kings of Israel,
and hast made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem
to go a whoring, like to the whoredoms of the house of
Ahab, and also hast slain thy brethren of thy father's
house, which were better than thyself : behold, with a
great plague will the Lord smite thy people, and thy
children, and thy wives, and all thy goods : and thou
shalt have great sickness by disease of thy bowels, until
thy bowels fall out by reason of the sickness day by day. "
Moreover the Lord stirred up against Jehoram the
spirit of the Philistines, and of the Arabians, that were
near the Ethiopians : and they came up into Judah, and
brake into it, and carried away all the substance that
was found in the king's house, and his sons also, and
his wives ; so that there was never a son left him, save
Ahaziah, the youngest of his sons. And after all this
the Lord smote him in his bowels with an incurable
disease. And it came to pass, that in process of time,
after the end of two years, his bowels fell out by reason
of his sickness : so he died of sore diseases. And his
people made no burning for him, like the burning of his
fathers. Thirty and two years old was he when he
began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years,
and departed without being desired. Howbeit they
buried him in the city of David, but not in the sepulchres
of the kings.
And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahaziah his
youngest son king in his stead : for the band of men that
came with the Arabians to the camp had slain all the
eldest. So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah
reigned. Forty and two years old was Ahaziah when
he began to reign, and he reigned one year In Jerusalem.
His mother's name also was Athallah the daughter of
xxii. 3— xxiii. I] II. CHRONICLES 323
Omri. He also walked in the ways of the house of
Ahab : for his mother was his counsellor to do wickedly.
Wherefore he did evil in the sight of the Lord like the
house of Ahab : for they were his counsellors after the
death of his father to his destruction. He walked also
after their counsel, and went with Jehoram the son of
Ahab king- of Israel to war against Hazael king of Syria
at Ramoth-gilead : and the Syrians smote Joram. And
he returned to be healed in Jezreel because of the wounds
which were given him at Ramah, when he fought with
Hazael king of Syria. And Azariah the son of Jehoram
king of Judah went down to see Jehoram the son of
Ahab at Jezreel, because he was sick. And the destruc-
tion of Ahaziah was of God by coming to Joram : for
when he was come, he went out with Jehoram against
Jehu the son of Nimshi, whom the Lord had anointed
to cut off the house of Ahab. And it came to pass, that,
when Jehu was executing judgment upon the house of
Ahab, and found the princes of Judah, and the sons of
the brethren of Ahaziah, that ministered to Ahaziah, he
slew them. And he sought Ahaziah : and they caught
him, (for he was hid in Samaria,) and brought him to
Jehu : and when they had slain him, they buried him :
" Because," said they, "he is the son of Jehoshaphat,
who sought the Lord with all his heart." So the house
of Ahaziah had no power to keep still the kingdom.
But when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that
her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed
royal of the house of Judah. But Jehoshabeath, the
daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah,
and stole him from among the king's sons that were
slain, and put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So
Jehoshabeath, the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife
of Jehoiada the priest, (for she was the sister of Aha-
ziah,) hid him from Athaliah, so that she slew him not.
And he was with them hid in the house of God six years :
and Athaliah reigned over the land.
And in the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened him-
self, and took the captains of hundreds, Azariah the son
of Jeroham, and Ishmael the son of Jehohanan, and Aza-
riah the son of Obed, and Maaseiah the son of Adaiah,
and Elishaphat the son of Zichri, into covenant with
324 11. CHRONICLES [xxiii. 2-13
him. And they went about in Judah, and gathered the
Levites out of all the cities of Judah, and the chief of
the fathers of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. And
all the congregation made a covenant with the king in
the house of God. And he said unto them : — " Behold,
the king's son shall reign, as the Lord hath said of the
sons of David. This is the thing that ye shall do; A
third part of you entering on the sabbath, of the priests
and of the Levites, shall be porters of the doors ; and
a third part shall be at the king's house; and a third
part at the gate of the foundation : and all the people
shall be in the courts of the house of the Lord. But let
none come into the house of the Lord, save the priests,
and they that minister of the Levites ; they shall go in,
for they are holy : but all the people shall keep the watch
of the Lord. And the Levites shall compass the king
round a'oout, every man with his weapons in his hand ;
and whosoever else cometh into the house, he shall be
put to death : but be ye with the king when he cometh
in, and when he goeth out. ' *
So the Levites and all Judah did according to all
things that Jehoiada the priest had commanded, and
took every man his men that were to come in on the
sabbath, with them that were to go out on the sabbath :
for Jehoiada the priest dismissed not the courses. More-
over Jehoiada the priest delivered to the captains of
hundreds spears, and bucklers, and shields, that had
been king David's, which were in the house of God.
And he set all the people, every man having his weapon
in his hand, from the right side of the temple to the left
side of the temple, along by the altar and the temple, by
the king round about. Then they brought out the king's
son, and put upon him the crown, and gave him the
testimony, and made him king. And Jehoiada and his
sons anointed him, and said :- — " God save the king."
Now when Athaliah heard the noise of the people
running and praising the king, she came to the people
into the house of the Lord : and she looked, and, behold,
the king stood at his pillar at the entering in, and the
princes and the trumpets by the king : and all the people
of the land rejoiced, and sounded with trumpets, also
the singers with instruments of music, and such as
xxiii. 14— xxiv. 5] II. CHRONICLES 325
taught to sing praise. Then Athaliah rent her clothes,
and said: — "Treason, Treason." Then Jehoiada the
priest brought out the captains of hundreds that were set
over the host, and said unto them : — " Have her forth
of the ranges : and v/hoso followeth her, let him be
slain with the sword. " For the priest said : — " Slay her
not in the house of the Lord." So they laid hands on
her ; and when she was come to the entering of the
horse gate by the king's house, they slew her there.
And Jehoiada made a covenant between him, and
between all the people, and between the king, that they
should be the Lord's people. Then all the people went
to the house of Baal, and brake it down, and brake his
altars and his images in pieces, and slew Mattan the
priest of Baal before the altars. Also Jehoiada ap-
pointed the offices of the house of the Lord by the hand
of the priests the Levites, whom David had distributed
in the house of the Lord, to offer the burnt offerings of
the Lord, as it is written in the law of Moses, with re-
joicing and with singing, as it was ordained by David.
And he set the porters at the gates of the house of the
Lord, that none which was unclean in any thing should
enter in. And he took the captains of hundreds, and
the nobles, and the governors of the people, and all the
people of the land, and brought down the king from the
house of the Lord : and they came through the high
gate into the king's house, and set the king upon the
throne of the kingdom. And all the people of the land
rejoiced : and the city was quiet, after that they had
slain Athaliah with the sword.
Joash was seven years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's
name also was Zibiah of Beer-sheba. And Joash did
that which was right in the sight of the Lord all the
days of Jehoiada the priest. And Jehoiada took for him
two wives ; and he begat sons and daughters.
And it came to pass after this, that Joash was minded
to repair the house of the Lord. And he gathered to-
gether the priests and the Levites, and said to them : —
" Go out unto the cities of Judah, and gather of all
Israel money to repair the house of your God from year
to year, and see that ye hasten the matter." Howbeit
326 II. CHRONICLES [xxiv. 6-17
the Levites hastened it not. And the king called for
Jehoiada the chief, and said unto him : — ■" Why hast
thou not required of the Levites to bring in out of Judah
and out of Jerusalem the collection, according to the
commandment of Moses the servant of the Lord, and
of the congregation of Israel, for the tabernacle of wit-
ness?" For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman,
had broken up the house of God ; and also all the dedi-
cated things of the house of the Lord did they bestow
upon the Baalim.
And at the king's commandment they made a chest,
and set it without at the gate of the house of the Lord.
And they made a proclamation through Judah and
Jerusalem, to bring in to the Lord the collection that
Moses the servant of God laid upon Israel in the wilder-
ness. And all the princes and all the people rejoiced,
and brought in, and cast into the chest, until they had
made an end. Now it came to pass, that at what time
the chest was brought unto the king's office by the hand
of the Levites, and when they saw that there was much
money, the king's scribe and the high priest's officer
came and emptied the chest, and took it, and carried it
to its place again. Thus they did day by day, and
gathered money in abundance. And the king and Jehoi-
ada gave it to such as did the work of the service of the
house of the Lord, and hired masons and carpenters to
repair the house of the Lord, and also such as wrought
iron and brass to mend the house of the Lord. So the
workmen wrought, and the work was perfected by them,
and they set the house of God in its state, and strength-
ened it. And when they had finished it, they brought
the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada,
whereof were made vessels for the house of the Lord,
even vessels to minister, and to offer withal, and spoons,
and vessels of gold and silver. And they offered burnt
offerings in the house of the Lord continually all the
days of Jehoiada. But Jehoiada waxed old, and was
full of days when he died ; an hundred and thirty years
old was he when he died. And they buried him in the
city of David among the kings, because he had done
good in Israel, both toward God, and toward His house.
Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of
J
xxiv. 1 8— XXV. I] II. CHRONICLES 327
Judah, and made obeisance to the king. Then the king
hearkened unto them. And they left the house of the
Lord God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and
idols : and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for
this their trespass. Yet He sent prophets to them, to
bring them again unto the Lord ; and they testified
against them : but they would not give ear. And the
Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada
the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto
them : — " Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the com-
mandments of the Lord, that ye cannot prosper? be-
cause ye hav« forsaken the Lord, He hath also forsaken
you." And they conspired against him, and stoned
him with stones at the commandment of the king in the
court of the house of the Lord. Thus Joash the king
remembered not the kindness which Jehoiada his father
had done to him, but slew his son. And when he died,
he said : — ■" The Lord look upon it, and require it."
And it came to pass at the end of the year, that the
host of Syria came up against him : and they came to
Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the princes of
the people from among the people, and sent all the spoil
of them unto the king of Damascus. For the army of
the Syrians came with a small company of men, and
the Lord delivered a very great host into their hand,
because they had forsaken the Lord God of their fathers.
So they executed judgment against Joash. And when
they were departed from him, (for they left him in
great diseases,) his own servants conspired against him
for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and
slew him on his bed, and he died : and they buried him
in the city of David, but they buried him not in the
sepulchres of the kings. And these are they that con-
spired against him ; Zabad the son of Shimeath an
Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith a
Moabitess. Now concerning his sons, and the greatness
of the burdens laid upon him, and the repairing of the
house of God, behold, they are written in the story of
the book of the' kings. And Amaziah his son reigned
in his stead.
Amaziah was twenty and five years old when he began
to reign, and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jeru-
328 11. CHRONICLES [xxv. 2-13
salem. And his mother's name' was Jehoaddan of Jeru-
salem. And he did that which was right in the sight
of the Lord, but not with a perfect heart.
Now it came to pass, when the kingdom was estab-
lished to him, that he slew his servants that had killed
the king his father. But he slew not their children, but
did as it is written in the law in the book of Moses,
where the Lord commanded, saying: — "The fathers
shall not die for the children, neither shall the children
die for the fathers, but every man shall die for his own
sin. "
Moreover Amaziah gathered Judah together, and
made them captains over thousands, and captains over
hundreds, according to the houses of their fathers,
throughout all Judali and Benjamin : and he numbered
them from twenty years old and above, and found them
three hundred thousand choice men, able to go forth to
war, that could handle spear and shield. He hired also
an hundred thousand mighty men of valour out of Israel
for an hundred talents of silver. But there came a man
of God to him, saying : — " O king, let not the army of
Israel go with thee ; for the Lord is not with Israel, to
wit, with all the children of Ephraim. But if thou wilt
go, do it, be strong for the battle : God shall make thee
fall before the enemy : for God hath power to help, and
to cast down. " And Amaziah said to the man of God : —
" But what shall we do for the hundred talents which
I have given to the army of Israel?" And the man of
God answered : — " The Lord is able to give thee much
more than this." Then Amaziah separated them, to
wit, the army that was come to him out of Ephraim, to
go home again : wherefore their anger was greatly
kindled against Judah, and they returned home in great
anger.
And Amaziah strengthened himself, and led forth his
people, and went to the valley of salt, and smote of the
children of Seir ten thousand. And other ten thousand
left alive did the children of Judah carry away captive,
and brought them unto the top of the rock, and cast
them down from the top of the rock, that they all were
broken in pieces. But the soldiers of the army which
Amaziah sent back, that they should not go with him
XXV. 14-23] 11. CHRONICLES 329
to battle, fell upon the cities of Judah, from Samaria
even unto Beth-horon, and smote three thousand of
them, and took much spoil.
Now it came to pass, after that Amaziah was come
from the slaughter of the Edomites, that he brought
the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be
his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and
burned incense unto them. Wherefore the anger of the
Lord was kindled against Amaziah, and He sent unto
him a prophet, which said unto him : — " Why hast thou
sought after the gods of the people, which could not
deliver their own people out of thine hand?" And it
came to pass, as he talked with him, that the king said
unto him : — " Have we made thee of the king's coun-
sel? forbear; why shouldest thou be smitten?" Then
the prophet forbare, and said : — "I know that God hath
determined to destroy thee, because thou hast done this,
and hast not hearkened unto my counsel."
Then Amaziah king of Judah took advice, and sent
to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of
Israel, saying — " Come, let us see one another in the
face." And Joash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king
of Judah, saying: — " The thistle that was in Lebanon
sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying. Give thy
daughter to my son to wife : and there passed by a wild
beast that was in Lebanon, and trode down the thistle.
Thou sayest, Lo, thou hast smitten the Edomites ; and
thine heart lifteth thee up to boast : abide now at home ;
why shouldest thou meddle to thine hurt, that thou
shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah with thee?" But
Amaziah would not hear ; for it came of God, that He
might deliver them into the hand of their enemies,
because they sought after the gods of Edom. So Joash
the king of Israel went up ; and they saw one another
in the face, both he and Amaziah king of Judah, at
Beth-shemesh, which belongeth to Judah. And Judah
was put to the worse before Israel, and they fled every
man to his tent. And Joash the king of Israel took
Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of
Jehoahaz, at Beth-shemesh, and brought him to Jeru-
salem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the
gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
M 2
330 II. CHRONICLES [xxv. 24— xxvu 10
And he took all the gold and the silver, and all the
vessels that were found in the house of God with Obed-
edom, and the treasures of the king's house, the host-
ages also, and returned to Samaria.
And Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived
after the death of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel
fifteen years. Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah,
first and last, behold, are they not written in the book
of the kings of Judah and Israel? Now after the time
that Amaziah did turn away from following the Lord
they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem ; and
he fled to Lachish : but they sent to Lachish after him,
and slew him there. And they brought him upon
horses, and buried him with his fathers in the city of
Judah.
Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was
sixteen years old, and made him king in the room of his
father Amaziah. He built Eloth, and restored it to
Judah, after that the king slept with his fathers. Six-
teen years old was Uzziah when he began to reign, and
he reigned fifty and two years in Jerusalem. His
mother's name also was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. And
he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord,
according to all that his father Amaziah did. And he
sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had under-
standing in the visions of God : and as long as he
sought the Lord, God made him to prosper. And he
went forth and warred against the Philistines, and brake
down the wall of Gath, and the wall of Jabneh, and the
wall of Ashdod, and built cities about Ashdod, and
among the Philistines. And God helped him against
the Philistines, and against the Arabians that dwelt in
Gur-baal, and the Mehunim. And the Ammonites gave
gifts to Uzziah : and his name spread abroad even to
the entering in of Egypt ; for he strengthened himself
exceedingly. Moreover Uzziah built towers in Jeru-
salem at the corner gate, and at the valley gate, and at
the turning of the wall, and fortified them. Also he built
towers in the desert, and digged many wells : for he
had much cattle, both in the low country, and in the
plains : husbandmen also, and vine dressers in the moun-
tains, and in Carmel : for he loved husbandrv. More-
xxvi. 11-22] II. CHRONICLES 331
over Uzziah had an host of fighting men, that went out
to war by bands, according to the number of their
account by the hand of Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the
ruler, under the hand of Hananiah, one of the king's
captains. The whole number of the chief of the fathers
of the mighty men of valour was two thousand and six
hundred. And under their hand was an army, three
hundred thousand and seven thousand and five hundred,
that made war with mighty power, to help the king
against the enemy. And Uzziah prepared for them
throughout all the host shields, and spears, and helmets,
and coats of mail, and bows, and slings to cast stones.
And he made in Jerusalem engines, invented by cunning
men, to be on the towers and upon the bulwarks, to
shoot arrows and great stones withal. And his name
spread far abroad ; for he was marvellously helped, till
he was strong.
But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to
his destruction : for he transgressed against the Lord
his God, and went into the temple of the Lord to burn
incense upon the altar of incense. And Azariah the
priest went in after him, and with him fourscore priests
of the Lord, that were valiant men : and they withstood
Uzziah the king, and said unto him : — " It appertaineth
not unto thee, Uzziah, to burn incense unto the Lord,
but to the priests the sons of Aaron, that are consecrated
to burn incense : go out of the sanctuary ; for thou hast
trespassed ; neither shall it be for thine honour from the
Lord God." Then Uzziah was wroth, and had a censer
in his hand to burn incense : and while he was wroth
with the priests, the leprosy even rose up in his forehead
before the priests in the house of the Lord, from beside
the incense altar. And Azariah the chief priest, and all
the priests, looked upon him, and, behold, he was
leprous in his forehead, and they thrust him out from
thence; yea, himself hasted also to go out, because the
Lord had smitten him. And Uzziah the king was a
leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a several
house, being a leper ; for he was cut off from the house
of the Lord : and Jotham his son was over the king's
house, judging the people of the land.
Now the rest of the acts of Uzziah, first and last, did
332 11. CHRONICLES [xxvi. 23— xxviii. 5
Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, write. So Uzziah
slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his
fathers in the field of the burial which belonged to the
kings; for they said: — " He is a leper:" and Jotham
his son reigned in his stead.
Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began
to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.
His mother's name also was Jerushah, the daughter of
Zadok. And he did that which was right in the sight
of the Lord, according to all that his father Uzziah did :
howbeit he entered not into the temple of the Lord. And
the people did yet corruptly. He built the high gate of
the house of the Lord, and on the wall of Ophel he built
much. Moreover he built cities in the mountains of
Judah, and in the forests he built castles and towers.
He fought also with the king of the Ammonites, and
prevailed against them. And the children of Ammon
gave him the same year an hundred talents of silver,
and ten thousand measures of wheat, and ten thousand
of barley. So much did the children of Ammon pay
unto him, both the second year and the third. So
Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways
before the Lord his God.
Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars,
and his ways, lo, they are written in the book of the
kings of Israel and Judah. He was five and twenty
years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen
years in Jerusalem. And Jotham slept with his fathers,
and they buried him in the city of David : and Ahaz
his son reigned in his stead.
Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem : but he did
not that which was right in the sight of the Lord, like
David his father : for he walked in the ways of the kings
of Israel, and made also molten images for the Baalim.
Moreover he burnt incense in the valley of the son of
Hinnom, and burnt his children in the fire, after the
abominations of the heathen whom the Lord had cast
out before the children of Israel. He sacrificed also and
burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and
under every green tree. Wherefore the Lord his God
delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and
xxviii. 6-15] II. CHRONICLES 333
they smote him, and carried away a great multitude of
them captives, and brought them to Damascus.
And he was also deUvered into the hand of the king
of Israel, who smote him with a great slaughter. For
Pekah the son of Remaliah slew in Judah an hundred
and twenty thousand in one day, which were all valiant
men ; because they had forsaken the Lord God of their
fathers. And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, slew
Maaseiah the king's son, and Azrikam the governor of
the house, and Elkanah that was next to the king. And
the children of Israel carried away captive of their
brethren two hundred thousand, women, sons, and
daughters, and took also away much spoil from them,
and brought the spoil to Samaria. But a prophet of the
Lord was there, whose name was Oded : and he went
out before the host that came to Samaria, and said unto
them : — " Behold, because the Lord God of your fathers
was wroth with Judah, He hath delivered them into
your hand, and ye have slain them in a rage that
reacheth up unto heaven. And now ye purpose to keep
under the children of Judah and Jerusalem for bondmen
and bondwomen unto you : but are there not with you,
even with you, sins against the Lord your God? Now
hear me therefore, and deliver the captives again, which
ye have taken captive of your brethren : for the fierce
wrath of the Lord is upon you,"
Then certain of the heads of the children of Ephraim,
Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of
Meshillemoth, and Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and
Amasa the son of Hadlai, stood up against them that
came from the war, and said unto them : — " Ye shall
not bring in the captives hither : for whereas we have
offended against the Lord already, ye intend to add
more to our sins and to our trespass : for our trespass
is great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel." So
the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the
princes and all the congregation. And the men which
were expressed by name rose up, and took the captives,
and with the spoil clothed all that were naked among
them, and arrayed them, and shod them, and gave them
to cat and to drink, and anointed them, and carried all
the feeble of them upon asses, and brought them to
334 n. CHRONICLES [xxviii. i6— xxix. 2
Jericho, the city of palm trees, to their brethren : then
they returned to Samaria.
At that time did king Ahaz send unto the kings of
Assyria to help him. For again the Edomites had come
and smitten Judah, and carried away captives. The
Philistines also had invaded the cities of the low
country, and of the south of Judah, and had taken
Beth-shemesh, and Ajalon, and Gederoth, and Shocho
with the villages thereof, and Timnah with the villages
thereof, Gimzo also and the villages thereof : and they
dwelt there. For the Lord brought Judah low because
of Ahaz king of Israel; for he made Judah naked, and
transgressed sore against the Lord. And Tilgath-pilne-
ser king of Assyria came unto him, and distressed him,
but strengthened him not. For Ahaz took away a por-
tion out of the house of the Lord, and out of the house
of the king, and of the princes, and gave it unto the
king of Assyria : but he helped him not. And in the
time of his distress did he trespass yet more against
the Lord : this is that king Ahaz. For he sacrificed unto
the gods of Damascus, which smote him : and he
said: — " Because the gods of the kings of Syria help
them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may
help me." But they were the ruin of him, and of all
Israel.
And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house
of God, and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of
God, and shut up the doors of the house of the Lord, and
he made him altars in every corner of Jerusalem. And
in every several city of Judah he made high places to
burn incense unto other gods, and provoked to anger
the Lord God of his fathers. Now the rest of his acts
and of all his v^-ays, first and last, behold, they are
written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him
in the city, even in Jerusalem : but they 'brought him
not into the sepulchres of the kings of Israel : and
Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead.
Hezekiah began to reign when he was five and twenty
years old, and he reigned nine and twenty years in
Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Abijah, the
daughter of Zechariah. And he did that which was
xxix. 3-16] II. CHRONICLES 335
right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that
David his father had done.
He, in the first year of his reign, in the first month,
opened the doors of the house of the Lord, and repaired
them. And he brought in the priests and the Levites,
and gathered them together into the east street, and
said unto them : — " Hear me, ye Levites, sanctify now
yourselves, and sanctify the house of the Lord God of
your fathers, and carry forth the filthiness out of the
holy place. For our fathers have trespassed, and done
that which was evil in the eyes of the Lord our God, and
have forsaken Him, and have turned away their faces
from the habitation of the Lord, and turned their backs.
Also they have shut up the doors of the porch, and put
out the lamps, and have not burned incense nor offered
burnt offerings in the hoi}' place unto the God of Israel.
Wherefore the wrath of the Lord was upon Judah and
Jerusalem, and He hath delivered them to trouble, to
astonishment, and to hissing, as ye see with your eyes.
For, lo, our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our
sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity
for this. Now it is in mine heart to make a covenant
with the Lord God of Israel, that His fierce wrath may
turn away from us. My sons, be not now negligent : for
the Lord hath chosen you to stand before Him, to serve
Him, and that ye should minister unto Him, and burn
incense. "
Then the Levites arose, Mahath the son of Amasai,
and Joel the son of Azariah, of the sons of the Kohath-
ites : and of the sons of Merari, Kish the son of Abdi,
and Azariah the son of Jehalelel : and of the Gershon-
ites ; Joah the son of Zlmmah, and Eden the son of
Joah : and of the sons of Elizaphan ; Shimri, and Jeiel :
and of the sons of Asaph ; Zechariah, and Mattaniah :
and of the sons of Heman ; Jehiel, and Shimei : and of
the sons of Jeduthun ; Shemaiah, and Uzziel. And they
gathered their brethren, and sanctified themselves, and
came, according to the commandment of the king, by
the words of the Lord, to cleanse the house of the Lord.
And the priests went into the inner part of the house of
the Lord, to cleanse it, and brought out all the unclean-
ness that they found in the temple of the Lord into the
336 II. CHRONICLES [xxlx. 17-27
court of the house of the Lord. And the Levites took it,
to carry it out abroad into the brook Kidron.
Now they began on the first day of the first month
to sanctify, and on the eighth day of the month came
they to the porch of the Lord : so they sanctified the
house of the Lord in eight days ; and in the sixteenth
day of the first month they made an end. Then they
went in to Hezekiah the king, and said : — " We have
cleansed all the house of the Lord, and the altar of
burnt offering, with all the vessels thereof, and the
shewbread table, with all the vessels thereof. Moreover
all the vessels, which king Ahaz in his reign did cast
away in his transgression, have we prepared and sancti-
fied, and, behold, they are before the altar of the Lord."
Then Hezekiah the king rose early, and gathered
the rulers of the city, and went up to the house of the
Lord. And they brought seven bullocks, and seven
rams, and seven lambs, and seven he goats, for a sin
offering for the kingdom, and for the sanctuary, and for
Judah. And he commanded the priests the sons of
Aaron to offer them on the altar of the Lord. So they
killed the bullocks, and the priests received the blood,
and sprinkled it on the altar : likewise, when they had
killed the rams, they sprinkled the blood upon the altar :
they killed also the lambs, and they sprinkled the blood
upon the altar. And they brought forth the he goats
for the sin offering before the king and the congrega-
tion ; and they laid their hands upon them : and the
priests killed them, and they made reconciliation with
their blood upon the altar, to make an atonement for all
Israel : for the king commanded that the burnt offering
and the sin offering should be made for all Israel. And
he set the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals,
with psalteries, and with harps, according to the com-
mandment of David, and of Gad the king's seer, and
Nathan the prophet : for so was the commandment of
the Lord by His prophets. And the Levites stood with
the instruments of David, and the priests with the trum-
pets. And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt
offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering
began, the song of the Lord began also with the trum-
pets, and with the instruments ordained by David king
xxix. 28— XXX. 4] II. CHRONICLES 337
of Israel. And all the congregation worshipped, and
the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded : and all
this continued until the burnt offering was finished.
And when they had made an end of oftering, the king
and all that were present with him bowed themselves,
and worshipped. Moreover Hezekiah the king and the
princes commanded the Levltes to sing praise unto the
Lord with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer.
And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed
their heads and worshipped.
Then Hezekiah answered and said : — " Now ye have
consecrated yourselves unto the Lord, come near and
bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of
the Lord." And the congregation brought in sacrifices
and thank offerings ; and as many as w^ere of a free
heart burnt offerings. And the number of the burnt
offerings, which the congregation brought, was three-
score and ten bullocks, an hundred rams, and two hun-
dred lambs : all these were for a burnt offering to the
Lord. And the consecrated things were six hundred
oxen and three thousand sheep. But the priests were
too few, so that they could not fla}' all the burnt offer-
ings : wherefore their brethren the Levites did help
them, till the work was ended, and until the other
priests had sanctified themselves : for the Levites were
more upright in heart to sanctify themselves than the
priests. And also the burnt offerings were in abun-
dance, with the fat of the peace offerings, and the drink
offerings for every burnt offering. So the service of
the house of the Lord was set in order. And Hezekiah
rejoiced, and all the people, that God had prepared the
people : for the thing was done suddenly.
And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote
letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should
come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, to keep
the passover unto the Lord God of Israel. For the king
had taken counsel, and his princes, and all the congre-
gation in Jerusalem, to keep the passover in the second
month. For they could not keep it at that time, because
the priests had not sanctified themselves suflSciently,
neither had the people gathered themselves together to
Jerusalem. And the thing pleased the king and all the
338 11. CHRONICLES [xxx. 5-16
congregation. So they established a decree to make
proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beer-sheba
even to Dan, that they should come to keep the pass-
over unto the Lord God of Israel at Jerusalem : for they
had not done it of a long time in such sort as it was
written. So the posts went with the letters from the
king and his princes throughout all Israel and Judah,
and according to the commandment of the king, saying :
— " Ye children of Israel, turn again unto the Lord God
of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and He will return to
the remnant of you, that are escaped out of the hand
of the kings of Assyria. And be not ye like your fathers,
and like your brethren, which trespassed against the
Lord God of their fathers, who therefore gave them up
to desolation, as ye see. Now be ye not stiffnecked, as
your fathers were, but yield yourselves unto the Lord,
and enter into His sanctuary, which He hath sanctified
for ever : and serve the Lord your God, that the fierce-
ness of His wrath may turn away from you. For if ye
turn again unto the Lord, your brethren and your chil-
dren shall find compassion before them that lead them
captive, so that they shall come again into this land :
for the Lord your God is gracious and merciful, and
will not turn away His face from you, if ye return unto
Him."
So the posts passed from city to city through the
country of Ephraim and Manasseh even unto Zebulun :
but they laughed them to scorn, and mocked them.
Nevertheless divers of Asher and Manasseh and of
Zebulun humbled themselves, and came to Jerusalem.
Also in Judah the hand of God was to give them one
heart to do the commandment of the king and of the
princes, by the word of the Lord. And there assembled
at Jerusalem much people to keep the feast of unleavened
bread in the second month, a very great congregation.
And they arose and took away the altars that were in
Jerusalem, and all the altars for incense took they away,
and cast them into the book Kidron. Then they killed
the passover on the fourteenth day of the second month :
and the priests and the Levites were ashamed, and
sanctified themselves, and brought in the burnt offerings
into the house of the Lord. And they stood in their
XXX. 17— xxxi. I] II. CHRONICLES 339
place after their manner, according to the law of Moses
the man of God : the priests sprinkled the blood, which
they received of the hand of the Levites. For there were
many in the congregation that were not sanctified :
therefore the Levites had the charge of the killing of
the passovers for every one that was not clean, to
sanctify them unto the Lord. For a multitude of the
people, even many of Ephraim, and Manasseh, Issachar,
and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet did they
eat the passover otherwise than it was written. But
Hezekiah prayed for them, saying: — " The good Lord
pardon every one that prepareth his heart to seek God,
the Lord God of his fathers, though he be not cleansed
according to the purification of the sanctuary."
And the Lord hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed
the people. And the children of Israel that were present
at Jerusalem kept the feast of unleavened bread seven
days with great gladness : and the Levites and the
priests praised the Lord day by day, singing with loud
instruments unto the Lord. And Hezekiah spake com-
fortably unto all the Levites that taught the good know-
ledge of the Lord : and they did eat throughout the
feast seven days, offering peace offerings, and making
confession to the Lord God of their fathers. And the
whole assembly took counsel to keep other seven days :
and they kept other seven days with gladness. For
Hezekiah king of Judah did give to the congregation
a thousand bullocks and seven thousand sheep ; and the
princes gave to the congregation a thousand bullocks
and ten thousand sheep : and a great number of priests
sanctified themselves. And all the congregation of
Judah, with the priests and the Levites, and all the
congregation that came out of Israel, and the strangers
that came out of the land of Israel, and that dwelt in
Judah, rejoiced. So there was great joy in Jerusalem :
for since the time of Solomon the son of David king of
Israel there was not the like in Jerusalem. Then the
priests the Levites arose and blessed the people : and
their voice was heard, and their prayer came up to His
holy dwelling place, even unto heaven.
Now when all this was finished, all Israel that were,
present went out to the cities of Judah, and brake the
340 II. CHRONICLES [xxxi. 2-12
pillars in pieces, and hewed down the Asherim, and
threw down the high places and the altars out of all
Judah and Benjamin, in Ephraim also and Manasseh,
until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the
children of Israel returned, every man to his possession,
into their own cities. And Hezekiah appointed the
courses of the priests and the Levites after their courses,
every man according to his service, the priests and
Levites for burnt offerings and for peace offerings, to
minister, and to give thanks, and to praise in the gates
of the tents of the Lord. He appointed also the king's
portion of his substance for the burnt offerings, to wit,
for the morning and evening burnt offerings, and the
burnt offerings for the sabbaths, and for the new moons,
and for the set feasts, as it is written in the law of the
Lord. Moreover he commanded the people that dwelt in
Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests and the
Levites, that they might be encouraged in the law of
the Lord. And as soon as the commandment came
abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance
the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of
all the increase of the field ; and the tithe of all things
brought they in abundantly. And concerning the chil-
dren of Israel and Judah, that dwelt in the cities of
Judah, they also brought in the tithe of oxen and sheep,
and the tithe of holy things which were consecrated unto
the Lord their God, and laid them by heaps. In the
third month they began to lay the foundation of the
heaps, and finished them in the seventh month. And
when Hezekiah and the princes came and saw the heaps,
they blessed the Lord, and His people Israel. Then
Hezekiah questioned with the priests and the Levites
concerning the heaps. And Azariah the chief priest of
the house of Zadok answered him, and said : — " Since
the people began to bring the offerings into the house
of the Lord, we have had enough to eat, and have left
plenty : for the Lord hath blessed His people; and that
which is left is this great store."
Then Hezekiah commanded to prepare chambers in the
house of the Lord ; and they prepared them, and brought
in the offerings and the tithes and the dedicated things
faithfully : . over which Conaniah the Levite was ruler,
xxxi. 13— xxxii. 3] II. CHRONICLES 341
and Shimei his brother was the next. And Jehiel, and
Azaziah, and Nahath, and Asahel, and Jerimoth, and
Jozabad, and Eliel, and Ismachiah, and Mahath, and
Benaiah, v/ere overseers under the hand of Conaniah
and Shimei his brother, at the commandment of Heze-
kiah the king-, and Azariah the ruler of the house of
God. And Kore the son of Imnah the Levite, the porter
toward the east, was over the freewill offerings of God,
to distribute the oblations of the Lord, and the most
holy things. And next him were Eden, and Miniamin,
and Jeshua, and Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah, in
the cities of the priests, in their set office, to give to their
brethren by courses, as well to the great as to the small :
beside their genealogy of males, from three years old
and upward, even unto every one that entereth into
the house of the Lord, his daily portion for their service
in their charges according to their courses ; both to the
genealogy of the priests by the house of their fathers,
and the Levites from twenty years old and upward,
in their charges by their courses ; and to the genealogy
of all their little ones, their wives, and their sons, and
their daughters, through all the congregation : for in
their set office they sanctified themselves in holiness :
also of the sons of Aaron the priests, which were in the
fields of the suburbs of their cities, in every several city,
the men that were expressed by name, to give portions
to all the males among the priests, and to all that were
reckoned by genealogies among the Levites.
And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah, and
wrought that which was good and right and truth
before the Lord his God. And in every work that he
began in the service of the house of God, and in the
law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did
it with all his heart, and prospered.
After these things, and the establishment thereof,
Sennacherib king of Assyria came, and entered into
Judah, and encamped against the fenced cities, and
thought to win them for himself. And when Hezekiah
saw that Sennacherib was come, and that he was pur-
posed to fight against Jerusalem, he took counsel with
his princes and his mighty men to stop the waters of
the fountains which were without the city : and they did
342 II. CHRONICLES [xxxii. 4-15
help him. So there was gathered much people together,
who stopped all the fountains, and the brook that ran
through the midst of the land, saying :— " Why should
the kings of Assyria come, and find much water?" Also
he strengthened himself, and built up all the wall that
was broken, and raised it up to the towers, and another
wall without, and repaired Millo in the city of David,
and made darts and shields in abundance. And he set
captains of war over the people, and gathered them to-
gether to him in the street of the gate of the city, and
spake comfortably to them, saying : — " Be strong and
courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of
Assyria, nor for all the multitude that is with him : for
there be more with us than with him : with him is an
arm of flesh ; but with us is the Lord our God to help
us, and to fight our battles." And the people rested
themselves upon the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.
After this did Sennacherib king of Assyria send his
servants to Jerusalem, (but he himself laid siege against
Lachish, and all his power with him,) unto Hezekiah
king of Judah, and unto all Judah that were at Jerusalem,
saying: — "Thus saith Sennacherib king of Assyria,
Whereon do ye trust, that ye abide in the siege m Jeru-
salem? Doth not Hezekiah persuade you to give over
yourselves to die by famine and by thirst, saying, The
Lord our God shall deliver us out of the hand of the king
of Assyria? Hath not the same Hezekiah taken away
His high places and His altars, and commanded Judah
and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall worship before one altar,
and burn incense upon it? Know ye not what I and
my fathers have done unto all the people of other lands ?
were the gods of the nations of those lands any ways
able to deliver their lands out of mine hand? Who was
there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers
utterly destroyed, that could deliver his people out of
mine hand, that your God should be able to deliver you
out of mine hand? Now therefore let not Hezekiah
deceive you, nor persuade you on this manner, neither
yet believe him : for no god of any nation or kingdom
was able to deliver his people out of mine hand, and out
of the hand of my fathers : how much less shall your
God deliver you out of mine hand?"
xxxii. 16-28] II. CHRONICLES 343
And his servants spake yet more against the Lord
God, and against His servant Hezekiah. He wrote also
letters to rail on the Lord God of Israel, and to speak
against Him, saying : — " As the gods of the nations of
other lands have not delivered their people out of mine
hand, so shall not the God of Hezekiah deliver His
people out of mine hand." Then they cried with a
loud voice in the Jews' speech unto the people of Jeru-
salem that were on the wall, to affright them, and to
trouble them ; that they might take the city. And they
spake against the God of Jerusalem, as against the
gods of the people of the earth, which were the work
of the hands of man. And for this cause Hezekiah the
king, and the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz, prayed
and cried to heaven.
And the Lord sent an angel, which cut off all the
mighty men of valour, and the leaders and captains in
the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with
shame of face to his own land. And when he was come
into the house of his god, they that came forth of his
own bowels slew him there with the sword. 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 other, and guided them on every
side. And many brought gifts unto the Lord to Jeru-
salem, and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah : so that
he was magnified in the sight of all nations from thence-
forth.
In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, and
prayed unto the Lord : and He spake unto him, and He
gave him a sign. But Hezekiah rendered not again
according to the benefit done unto him ; for his heart
was lifted up : therefore there was wrath upon him, and
upon Judah and Jerusalem. Notwithstanding Hezekiah
humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and
the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the
Lord came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah.
And Hezekiah had exceeding much riches and honour :
and he made himself treasuries for silver, and for gold,
and for precious stones, and for spices, and for shields,
and for all manner of pleasant jewels ; storehouses also
for the increase of corn, and wine, and oil ; and stalls for
344 II. CHRONICLES [xxxii. 29— xxxiii. 8
all manner of beasts, and flocks in folds. Moreover he
provided him cities, and possessions of flocks and herds
in abundance : for God had given him substance very
much. This same Hezekiah also stopped the upper
watercourse of Gihon, and brought it straight down to
the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah pros-
pered in all his works. Howbeit in the business of the
ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto
him to enquire of the wonder that was done in the land,
God left him, to try him, that He might know all that
was in his heart.
Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and his good-
ness, behold, they are written in the vision of Isaiah the
prophet, the son of Amoz, and in the book of the kings
of Judah and Israel. And Hezekiah slept with his
fathers, and they buried him in the chiefest of the
sepulchres of the sons of David : and all Judah and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem did him honour at his death.
And Manasseh his son reigned in his stead.
Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to
reign, and he reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem :
but did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, like
unto the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord
had cast out before the children of Israel. For he built
again the high places which Hezekiah his father had
broken down, and he reared up altars for the Baalim,
and made Asheroth, and worshipped all the host of
heaven, and served them. Also he built altars in the
house of the Lord, whereof the Lord had said : — " In
Jerusalem shall My name be for ever." And he built
altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the
house of the Lord. And he caused his children to pass
through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom : also
he observed times, and used enchantments, and used
witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirit, and with
wizards : he wrought much evil in the sight of the Lord,
to provoke Him to anger. And he set a carved image,
the idol which he had made, in the house of God, of
which God had said to David and to Solomon his son : —
" In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen
before all the tribes of Israel, will I put My name for
ever : neither will I any more remove the foot of Israel
xxxiii. 9-20] II. CHRONICLES 345
from out of the land which I have appointed for your
fathers; so that they will take heed to do all that I
have commanded them, according to the whole law
and the statutes and the ordinances by the hand of
Moses."
So Manasseh made Judah and the inhabitants of Jeru-
salem to err, and to do worse than the heathen, whom
the Lord had destroyed before the children of Israel.
And the Lord spake to Manasseh, and to his people :
but they would not hearken. Wherefore the Lord
brought upon them the captains of the host of the king
of Assyria, which took Manasseh in chains, and bound
him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon. And when
he was in affliction, he besought the Lord his God, and
humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers,
and prayed unto Him : and He was intreated of him,
and heard his supplication, and brought him again to
Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that
the Lord He was God.
Now after this he built a wall without the city of
David, on the west side of Gihon, in the valley, even
to the entering in at the fish gate, and compassed about
Ophel, and raised it up a very great height, and put
captains of war in all the fenced cities of Judah. And
he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of the
house of the Lord, and all the altars that he had built in
the mount of the house of the Lord, and in Jerusalem,
and cast them out of the city. And he repaired the
altar of the Lord, and sacrificed thereon peace offerings
and thank offerings, and commanded Judah to serve the
Lord God of Israel. Nevertheless the people did sacri-
fice still in the high places, yet unto the Lord their God
only.
Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and his prayer
unto his God, and the words of the seers that spake to
him in the name of the Lord God of Israel, behold, they
are written in the book of the kings of Israel. His
prayer also, and how God was intreated of him, and all
his sins, and his trespass, and the places wherein he
built high places, and set up the Asherim and the graven
images, before be was humbled : behold, they are written
among the sayings of the seers. So Manasseh slept with
346 II. CHRONICLES [xxxiii. 21— xxxiv. 8
his fathers, and they buried him in his own house : and
Amon his son reigned in his stead.
Amon was two and twenty years old when he began
to reign, and reigned two years in Jerusalem. But
he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord,
as did Manasseh his father : for Amon sacrificed unto
all the carved images which Manasseh his father had
made, and served them ; and humbled not himself before
the Lord, as Manasseh his father had humbled himself ;
but Amon trespassed more and more. And his servants
conspired against him, and slew him in his own house.
But the people of the land slew all them that had con-
spired against king Amon ; and the people of the land
made Josiah his son king in his stead.
Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned in Jerusalem one and thirty years. And
he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord,
and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined
neither to the right hand nor to the left. For in the
eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he
began to seek after the God of David his father : and
in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jeru-
salem from the high places, and the Asherim, and the
carved images, and the molten images. And they brake
down the altars of the Baalim in his presence ; and the
sun-images, that were on high above them, he cut
down ; and the Asherim, and the carved images, and
the molten images, he brake in pieces, and made dust
of them, and strowed it upon the graves of them that
had sacrificed unto them. And he burnt the bones of
the priests upon their altars, and cleansed Judah and
Jerusalem. And so did he in the cities of Manasseh,
and Ephraim, and Simeon, even unto Naphtali, with
their ruins round about. And when he had broken down
the altars and had beaten the Asherim and the graven
images into powder, and had cut down all the idols
throughout all the land of Israel, he returned to
Jerusalem.
Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had
purged the land, and the house, he sent Shaphan the
son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah the governor of the city,
and Joah the son of Joahaz the recorder, to repair the
xxxiv. 9-21] II. CHRONICLES 347
house of the Lord his God. And when they came to
Hilkiah the high priest, they deHvered the money that
was brought into the house of God, which the Levites
that kept the doors had gathered of the hand of Manas-
seh and Ephraim, and of all the remnant of Israel, and
of all Judah and Benjamin ; and they returned to Jeru-
salem. And they put it in the hand of the workmen
that had the oversight of the house of the Lord, and they
gave it to the workmen that wrought in the house of the
Lord, to repair and amend the house : even to the arti-
ficers and builders gave they it, to buy hewn stone, and
timber for couplings, and to floor the houses which the
kings of Judah had destroyed. And the men did the
work faithfully : and the overseers of them were Jahath
and Obadiah, the Levites, of the sons of Merari ; and
Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites,
to set it forward ; and other of the Levites, all that
could skill of instruments of music. Also they were over
the bearers of burdens, and were overseers of all that
wrought the work in any manner of service : and of the
Levites there were scribes, and officers, and porters.
And when they brought out the money that was
brought into the house of the Lord, Hilkiah the priest
found a book of the law of the Lord given by Moses.
And Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the scribe : —
" I have found the book of the law in the house of the
Lord." And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shaphan.
And Shaphan carried the book to the king, and brought
the king word back again, saying: — "All that was
committed to thy servants, they do it. And they have
gathered together the money that was found in the house
of the Lord, and have delivered it into the hand of the
overseers, and to the hand of the workmen." Then
Shaphan the scribe told the king, saying: — "Hilkiah
the priest hath given me a book." And Shaphan read
it before the king.
And it came to pass, when the king had heard the
words of the law, that he rent his clothes. And the king
commanded Hilkiah, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan,
and Abdon the son of Micah, and Shaphan the scribe, and
Asaiah a servant of the king's, saying : — " Go, enquire
of the Lord for me, and for them that are left in Israel
348 11. CHRONICLES [xxxiv. 22-31
and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that is
found : for great is the wrath of the Lord that is poured
out upon us, because our fathers have not kept the word
of the Lord, to do after all that is written in this book."
And Hilkiah, and they that the king had appointed,
went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the
son of Tikvath, the son of Hasrah, keeper of the ward-
robe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college :) and
they spake to her to that effect. And she answered
them: — "Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Tell ye
the man that sent you to me, Thus saith the Lord,
Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the
inhabitants thereof, even all the curses that are written
in the book which they have read before the king of
Judah : because they have forsaken Me, and have burned
incense unto other gods, that they might provoke Me to
anger with all the works of their hands ; therefore My
wrath shall be poured out upon this place, and shall not
be quenched. And as for the king of Judah, who sent
you to enquire of the Lord, so shall ye say unto him,
Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Concerning the words
which thou hast heard, because thine heart was tender,
and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou
heardest His words against this place, and against the
inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before Me,
and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before Me; I have
even heard thee also, saith the Lord. Behold, I will
gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered
to thy grave in peace, neither shall thine eyes see all the
evil that I will bring upon this place, and upon the
inhabitants of the same." So they brought the king
word again.
Then the king sent and gathered together all the
elders of Judah and Jerusalem. And the king went up
into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah, and
the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests, and the
Levites, and all the people, great and small : and he
read in their ears all the words of the book of the
covenant that was found in the house of the Lord. And
the king stood in his place, and made a covenant before
the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep His com-
mandments, and His testimonies, and His statutes, with
xxxiv. 32— XXXV. 9] 11. CHRONICLES 349
all his heart, and with all his soul, to perform the words
of the covenant which are written in this book. And he
caused all that were present in Jerusalem and Benjamin
to stand to it. And the inhabitants of Jerusalem did
according to the covenant of God, the God of their
fathers. And Josiah took away all the abominations out
of all the countries that pertained to the children of
Israel, and made all that were present in Israel to serve,
even to serve the Lord their God. And all his days they
departed not from following the Lord, the God of their
fathers.
Moreover Josiah kept a passover unto the Lord in
Jerusalem : and they killed the passover on the four-
teenth day of the first month. And he set the priests in
thejr charges, and encouraged them to the service of the
house of the Lord, and said unto the Levites that taught
all Israel, which were holy unto the Lord: — " Put the
holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David
king of Israel did build; it shall not be a burden upon
your shoulders : serve now the Lord your God, and His
people Israel, and prepare yourselves by the houses of
your fathers, after your courses, according to the
writing of David king of Israel, and according to the
writing of Solomon his son. And stand in the holy place
according to the divisions of the families of the fathers of
your brethren the people, and after the division of the
families of the Levites. So kill the passover, and sanctify
yourselves, and prepare your brethren, that they may do
according to the word of the Lord by the hand of
Moses."
And Josiah gave to the people, of the flock, lambs
and kids, all for the passover offerings, for all that were
present, to the number of thirty thousand, and three
thousand bullocks : these were of the king's substance.
And his princes gave willingly unto the people, to the
priests, and to the Levites : Hilkiah and Zechariah and
Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gave unto the priests
for the passover offerings two thousand and six hundred
small cattle, and three hundred oxen. Conaniah also,
and Shemaiah and Nethaneel, his brethren, and Hasha-
biah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gave
unto the Levites for passover offerings five thousand
350 11. CHRONICLES [xxxv. 10-21
small cattle, and five hundred oxen. So the service was
prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the
Levites in their courses, according to the king's com-
mandment. And they killed the passover, and the
priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the
Levites flayed them. And they removed the burnt
offerings, that they might give according to the divisions
of the families of the people, to offer unto the Lord, as
it is written in the book of Moses. And so did they
with the oxen. And they roasted the passover with fire
according to the ordinance : but the other holy offerings
sod they in pots, and in caldrons, and in pans, and
divided them speedily among all the people. And after-
ward they made ready for themselves, and for the
priests : because the priests the sons of Aaron were
busied in offering of burnt offerings and the fat until
night; therefore the Levites prepared for themselves,
and for the priests the sons of Aaron. And the singers
the sons of Asaph were in their place, according to the
commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and
Jeduthun the king's seer ; and the porters waited at every
gate ; they might not depart from their service ; for
their brethren the Levites prepared for them. So all
the service of the Lord was prepared the same day, to
keep the passover, and to offer burnt offerings upon the
altar of the Lord, according to the commandment of
king Josiah. And the children of Israel that were
present kept the passover at that time, and the feast of
unleavened bread seven days. And there was no pass-
over like to that kept in Israel from the days of Samuel
the prophet ; neither did all the kings of Israel keep
such a passover as Josiah kept, and the priests, and the
Levites, and all Judah and Israel that were present, and
the inhabitants of Jerusalem. In the eighteenth year
of the reign of Josiah was this passover kept.
After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple,
Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against Carche-
mish by Euphrates : and Josiah went out against him.
But he sent ambassadors to him, saying : — " What have
I to do with thee, thou king of Judah? I come not
against thee this day, but against the house wherewith
I have war : for God commanded me to make haste :
XXXV. 22— xxxvi. 8] II. CHRONICLES 351
forbear thee from meddling with God, who is with me,
that He destroy thee not." Nevertheless Josiah would
not turn his face from him, but disguised himself, that
he might fight with him, and hearkened not unto the
words of Necho from the mouth of God, and came to
fight in the valley of Megiddo. And the archers shot
at king Josiah; and the king said to his servants: —
"Have me away; for I am sore wounded." His
servants therefore took him out of that chariot, and put
him in the second chariot that he had ; and they brought
him to Jerusalem, and he died, and was buried in one of
the sepulchres of his fathers. And all Judah and Jeru-
salem mourned for Josiah. And Jeremiah lamented for
Josiah : and all the singing men and the singing women
spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, and
made them an ordinance in Israel : and, behold, they
are written in the Lamentations. Now the rest of the
acts of Josiah, and his goodness, according to that
which was written in the law of the Lord, and his deeds,
first and last, behold, they are written in the book of the
kings of Israel and Judah.
Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of
Josiah, and made him king in his father's stead in Jeru-
salem. Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when
he began to reign, and he reigned three months in
Jerusalem. And the king of Egypt put him down at
Jerusalem, and condemned the land in an hundred talents
of silver and a talent of gold. And the king of Egypt
made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and
Jerusalem, and turned his name to Jehoiakim. And
Necho took Jehoahaz his brother, and carried him
to Egypt.
Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he
began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jeru-
salem : and he did that which was evil in the sight of
the Lord his God. Against him came up Nebuchadnez-
zar king of Babylon, and bound him in fetters, to carry
him to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar also carried of the
vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon, and put them
in his temple at Babylon. Now the rest of the acts of
Jehoiakim, and his abominations which he did, and that
which was found in him, behold, they are written in the
352 11. CHRONICLES [xxxvi. 9-21
book of the kings of Israel and ludah : and Jehoiachin
his son reigned in his stead.
Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to
reign, and he reigned three months and ten days in
Jerusalem : and he did that which was evil in the sight
of the Lord. And when the year was expired, king
Nebuchadnezzar sent, and brought him to Babylon, with
the goodly vessels of the house of the Lord, and made
Zedekiah his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem.
Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he
began to reign, and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem.
And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord
his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the
prophet speaking from the mouth of the Lord. And he
also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had
made him swear by God : but he stiffened his neck, and
hardened his heart from turning unto the Lord God of
Israel. Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the
people, transgressed very much after all the abomina-
tions of the heathen ; and polluted the house of the Lord
which He had hallowed in Jerusalem. And the Lord
God of their fathers sent to them by His messengers,
rising up betimes, and sending ; because He had com-
passion on His people, and on His dwelling place : but
they mocked the messengers of God, and despised His
words, and misused His prophets, until the wrath of the
Lord arose against His people, till there was no remedy.
Therefore He brought upon them the king of the Chal-
dees, who slew their young men with the sword in the
house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion upon
young man or maiden, old man, or him that stooped for
age : He gave them all into his hand. And all the
vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the
treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures
of the king, and of his princes ; all these he brought
to Babylon. And they burnt the house of God, and
brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all
the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the
goodly vessels thereof. And them that had escaped
from the sword carried he away to Babylon ; where they
were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the
kingdom of Persia : to fulfil the word of the Lord by the
xxxvi. 22] II. CHRONICLES 353
mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sab-
baths : for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath,
to fulfil threescore and ten years.
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that
the word of the Lord spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah
might be accomplished, the Lord stirred up the spirit
of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation
throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing,
saying: — "Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the
kingdoms of the earth hath the Lord God of heaven
given me; and He hath charged me to build Him an
house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there
among you of all His people? The Lord his God be with
him, and let him go up."
THE PRAYER OF MANASSES
KING OF JUDAH,
WHEN HE WAS HOLDEN CAPTIVE IN BABYLON.
O Lord, Almighty God of our fathers, Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob, and of their righteous seed ; who hast
made heaven and earth, with all the ornament thereof ;
who hast bound the sea by the word of Thy command-
ment ; who hast shut up the deep, and sealed it by Thy
terrible and glorious name ; whom all men fear, and
tremble before Thy power ; for the majesty of Thy glory
cannot be borne, and Thine angry threatening toward
sinners is importable : but Thy merciful promise is un-
measurable and unsearchable ; for Thou art the most
high Lord, of great compassion, longsuffering, very
merciful, and repentest of the evils of men. Thou, O
Lord, according to Thy great goodness hast promised
repentance and forgiveness to them that have sinned
against Thee : and of Thine infinite mercies hast ap-
pointed repentance unto sinners, that they may be
saved. Thou therefore, O Lord, that art the God of
the just, hast not appointed repentance to the just, as
to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, which have not
VOL. II. N
354 THE PRAYER OF MANASSES
sinned against Thee ; but Thou hast appointed repent-
ance unto me that am a sinner : for I have sinned above
the number of the sands of the sea. My transgressions,
0 Lord, are multiplied : my transgressions are multi-
plied, and I am not worthy to behold and see the height
of heaven for the multitude of mine iniquities. I am
bowed down with many iron bands, that I cannot lift
up mine head, neither have any release : for I have
provoked Thy wrath, and done evil before Thee : I did
not Thy will, neither kept I Thy commandments : I have
set up abominations, and have multiplied offences. Now
therefore I bow the knee of mine heart, beseeching Thee
of grace. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and
1 acknowledge mine iniquities : wherefore, I humbly
beseech Thee, forgive me, O Lord, forgive me, and
destroy me not with mine iniquities. Be not angry with
me for ever, by reserving evil for me ; neither condemn
me into the lower parts of the earth. For Thou art the
God, even the God of them that repent ; and in me Thou
wilt shew all Thy goodness : for Thou wilt save me,
that am unworthy, according to Thy great mercy.
Therefore I will praise Thee for ever all the days of my
life : for all the powers of the heavens do praise Thee,
and Thine is the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
EZRA
Now in the first year of Cyrus king- of Persia, that
the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might
be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king
of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all
his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying : —
" Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The Lord God of
heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth ; and
He hath charged me to build Him an house at Jeru-
salem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of
all His people? his God be with him, and let him go up
to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of
the Lord God of Israel, (He is the God,) which is in
Jerusalem. And whosoever remaineth in any place
where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him
with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with
beasts, beside the freewill offering for the house of God
that is in Jerusalem."
Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and
Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, with all
them whose spirit God had raised, to go up to build the
house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem. And all they
that were about them strengthened their hands with
vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, and with beasts,
and with precious things, beside all that was willingly
offered. Also Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels
of the house of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had
brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the
house of his gods ; even those did Cyrus king of Persia
bring forth by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and
numbered them unto Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah,
And this is the num.ber of them : thirty chargers of gold,
a thousand chargers of silver, nine and twenty knives,
thirty basons of gold, silver basons of a second sort four
hundred and ten, and other vessels a thousand. All the
vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four
hundred. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up with them
355
356 EZRA [ii. 1-33
of the captivity that were brought up from Babylon unto
Jerusalem.
Now these are the children of the province that went
up out of the captivity, of those which had been carried
away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had
carried away unto Babylon, and came again unto Jeru-
salem and Judah, every one unto his city ; which came
with Zerubbabel : Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah,
Mordecai, Bilshan, Mizpar, Bigvai, Rehum, Baanah.
The number of the men of the people of Israel : the chil-
dren of Parosh, two thousand an hundred seventy and
two. The children of Shephatiah, three hundred seventy
and two. The children of Arab, seven hundred seventy
and five. The children of Pahath-moab, of the children
of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred and
twelve. The children of Elam, a thousand two hundred
fifty and four. The children of Zattu, nine hundred
forty and five. The children of Zaccai, seven hundred
and threescore. The children of Bani, six hundred forty
and two. The children of Bebai, six hundred twenty
and three. The children of Azgad, a thousand two
hundred twenty and two. The children of Adonikam,
six hundred sixty and six. The children of Bigvai, two
thousand fifty and six. The children of Adin, four hun-
dred fifty and four. The children of Ater of Hezekiah,
ninety and eight. The children of Bezai, three hundred
twenty and three. The children of Jorah, an hundred
and twelve. The children of Hashum, two hundred
twenty and three. The children of Gibbar, ninety and
five. The children of Beth-lehem, an hundred twenty
and three. The men of Netophah, fifty and six. The
men of Anathoth, an hundred twenty and eight. The
children of Azmaveth, forty and two. The children of
Kirjath-arim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred and
forty and three. The children of Ramah and Gaba, six
hundred twenty and one. The men of Michmas, an
hundred twenty and two. The men of Beth-el and Ai,
two hundred twenty and three. The children of Nebo,
fifty and two. The children of Magbish, an hundred
fifty and six. The children of the other Elam, a thou^
sand two hundred and fifty four. The children of
Harim, three hundred and twenty. The children of Lod,
if. 34-59] EZRA 357
Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred twenty and five. The
children of Jericho, three hundred forty and five. The
children of Senaah, three thousand and six hundred and
thirty.
The priests : the children of Jedaiah, of the house ot
Jeshua, nine hundred seventy and three. The children
of Immer, a thousand fifty and two. The children of
Pashur, a thousand two hundred forty and seven. The
children of Harim, a thousand and seventeen.
The Levites : the children of Jeshua and Kadmiel, of
the children of Hodaviah, seventy and four.
The singers : the children of Asaph, an hundred
twenty and eight.
The children of the porters : the children of Shallum,
the children of Ater, the children of Talmon, the children
of Akkub, the children of Hatita, the children of Shobai,
in all an hundred thirty and nine.
The Nethinim : the children of Ziha, the children of
Hasupha, the children of Tabbaoth, the children of
Keros, the children of Siaha, the children of Padon, the
children of Lebanah, the children of Hagabah, the chil-
dren of Akkub, the children of Hagab, the children of
Shalmai, the children of Hanan, the children of Giddel,
the children of Gahar, the children of Reaiah, the chil-
dren of Rezin, the children of Nekoda, the children of
Gazzam, the children of Uzza, the children of Paseah,
the children of Besai, the children of Asnah, the chil-
dren of Mehunim, the children of Nephusini, the children
of Bakbuk, the children of Hakupha, the children of
Harhur, the children of Bazluth, the children of Mehida,
the children of Harsha, the children of Barkos, the
children of Sisera, the children of Thamah, the children
of Neziah, the children of Hatipha.
The children of Solomon's servants : the children of
Sotai, the children of Sophereth, the children of Peruda,
the children of Jaalah, the children of Darkon, the chil-
dren of Giddel, the children of Shephatiah, the children
of Hattil, the children of Pochereth of Zebaim, the
children of Ami. All the Nethinim, and the children of
Solomon's servants, were three hundred ninety and two.
And these were they which went up from Tel-melah,
Tel-harsa, Cherub, Addan, and Immer : but they could
358 EZRA [ii. 60— iii. 3
not shew their fathers' houses, and their seed, whether
they were of Israel : the children of Delaiah, the chil-
dren of Tobiah, the children of Nekoda, six hundred
fifty and two.
And of the children of the priests : the children of
Habaiah, the children of Koz, the children of Barzillai ;
which took a wife of the daughters of Barzillai the
Gileadite, and was called after their name : these sought
their register among those that were reckoned by
genealogy, but they were not found : therefore were
they, as polluted, put from the priesthood. And the Tir-
shatha said unto them, that they should not eat of the
most holy things, till there stood up a priest with Urim
and with Thummim.
The whole congregation together was forty and two
thousand three hundred and threescore, beside their
servants and their maids, of whom there were seven
thousand three hundred thirty and seven : and there
were among them two hundred singing men and singing
women. Their horses were seven hundred thirty and
six ; their mules, tv/o hundred forty and five ; their
camels, four hundred thirty and five; their asses, six
thousand seven hundred and twenty.
And some of the chief of the fathers, when they came
to the house of the Lord which is at Jerusalem, offered
freely for the house of God to set it up in its place : they
gave after their ability unto the treasure of the work
threescore and one thousand drams of gold, and five
thousand pound of silver, and one hundred priests'
garments. So the priests, and the Levites, and some of
the people, and the singers, and the porters, and the
Nethinim, dwelt in their cities, and all Israel in their
cities.
And when the seventh month was come, and the
children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered
themselves together as one man to Jerusalem. Then
stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the
priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and his
brethren, and builded the altar of the God of Israel, to
offer burnt offerings thereon, as it is written in the law
of Moses the man of God. And they set the altar upon
its bases ; for fear was upon them because of the people
iii. 4-12] EZRA 359
of those countries : and they offered burnt offerings
thereon unto the Lord, even burnt offerings morning and
evening. They kept also the feast of tabernacles, as it
is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by num-
ber, according to the custom, as the duty of every day
required ; and afterward offered the continual burnt
offering, both of the new moons, and of all the set
feasts of the Lord that were consecrated, and of every
one that willingly offered a freewill offering unto the
Lord. From the first day of the seventh month began
they to offer burnt offerings unto the Lord. But the
foundation of the temple of the Lord was not yet laid.
They gave money also unto the masons, and to the car-
penters ; and meat, and drink, and oil, unto them of
Zidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from
Lebanon to the sea of Joppa, according to the grant that
they had of Cyrus king of Persia.
Now in the second year of their coming unto the house
of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, began Zerub-
babel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak,
and the remnant of their brethren the priests and the
Levites, and all they that were come out of the cap-
tivity unto Jerusalem ; and appointed the Levites, from
twenty years old and upward, to set forward the work
of the house of the Lord. Then stood Jeshua with his
sons and his brethren, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons
of Judah, together, to set forward the workmen in the
house of God : the sons of Henadad, with their sons
and their brethren the Levites. And when the builders
laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, they set
the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the
Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the
Lord, after the ordinance of David king of Israel. And
they sang together by course in praising and giving
thanks unto the Lord; because He is good, for His
mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the
people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the
Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord
was laid. But many of the priests and Levites and
chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that had
seen the first house, when the foundation of this house
was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and
360 EZRA [iii. 13 — iv. 11
many shouted aloud for joy : so that the people could
not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the
noise of the weeping of the people : for the people
shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard
afar off.
Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin
heard that the children of the captivity builded the
temple unto the Lord God of Israel ; then they came to
Zerubbabel, and to the chief of the fathers, and said
unto them : — " Let us build with you : for we seek your
God, as ye do; and we do sacrifice unto Him since the
days of Esar-haddon king of Assur, which brought us
up hither." But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest
of the chief of the fathers of Israel, said unto them : —
" Ye have nothing to do with us to build an house unto
our God ; but we ourselves together will build unto the
Lord God of Israel, as king Cyrus the king of Persia
hath commanded us." Then the people of the land
weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled
them in building, and hired counsellors against them,
to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of
Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
And in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his
reign, wrote they unto him an accusation against the
inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
And in the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam, Mith-
redath, Tabeel, and the rest of their companions, unto
Artaxerxes king of Persia ; and the writing of the letter
was written in the Syrian character, and set forth in
the Syrian tongue. Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai
the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes
the king in this sort : then wrote Rehum the chancellor,
and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their com-
panions; the Dinaites, the Apharsathchites, the Tarpel-
ites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians,
the Susanchites, the Dehavites, and the Elamites, and
the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Asnap-
per brought over, and set in the cities of Samaria, and
the rest that are on this side the river, and at such a
time.
This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto him,
even unto Artaxerxes the king : —
iv. 12-23] EZRA 361
" Thy servants the men on this side the River, and at
such a time.
"Be it known unto the king-, that the Jews which
came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem, build-
ing the rebelHous and the bad city, and have set up the
walls thereof, and joined the foundations. Be it known
now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the
walls set up again, then will they not pay toll, tribute,
and custom, and so thou shalt endamage the revenue
of the kings. Now because we have maintenance from
the king's palace, and it was not meet for us to see the
king's dishonour, therefore have we sent and certified
the king, that search may be made in the book of the
records of thy fathers, so shalt thou find in the book
of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious
city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces, and that
they have moved sedition within the same of old time :
for which cause was this city destroyed. W6 certify
the king that, if this city be builded again, and the
walls thereof set up, by this means thou shalt have no
portion on this side the River."
Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the chan-
cellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of
their companions that dwell in Samaria, and unto the
rest beyond the River : —
" Peace, and at such a time.
" The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly
read before me. And I commanded, and search hath
been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath
made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and
sedition have been made therein. There have been
mighty kings also over Jerusalem, which have ruled
over all countries beyond the River ; and toll, tribute,
and custom, was paid unto them. Give ye now com-
mandment to cause these men to cease, and that this
city be not builded, until another commandment shall be
given from me. Take heed now that ye fail not to do
this : why should damage grow to the hurt of the
kings?"
Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes' letter was
read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their
companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto
N 2
362 EZRA [iv. 24— V. 12
the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power.
Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at
Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the
reign of Darius king of Persia.
Then the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zecha-
riah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that
were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of
Israel, even unto them. Then rose up Zerubbabel the
son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and
began to build the house of God which is at Jerusalem :
and with them were the prophets of God helping them.
At the same time came to them Tatnai, governor on
this side the River, and Shethar-boznai, and their com-
panions, and said thus unto them : — " Who hath com-
manded you to build this house, and to make up this
wall?" Then said we unto them after this manner: —
" What are the names of the men that make this build-
ing?" But the eye of their God was upon the elders of
the Jews, that they could not cause them to cease, till
the matter came to Darius : and then they returned
answer by letter concerning this matter.
The copy of the letter that Tatnai, governor on this
side the river, and Shethar-boznai, and his companions
the Apharsachites, which were on this side the River,
sent unto Darius the king : they sent a letter unto him,
wherein was written thus : —
" Unto Darius the king, all peace.
"Be it known unto the king, that we went into the
province of Judea, to the house of the great God, which
is builded with great stones, and timber is laid in the
walls, and this work goeth fast on, and prospereth in
their hands. Then asked we those elders, and said
unto them thus. Who commanded you to build this
house, and to make up these walls ? We asked their
names also, to certify thee, that we might write the
names of the men that were the chief of them. And
thus they returned us answer, saying, We are the
servants of the God of heaven and earth, and build the
house that was builded these many years ago, which a
great king of Israel builded and set up. But after that
our fathers had provoked the God of heaven unto wrath.
He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king
V. 13— vi. 6] EZRA 363
of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house,
and carried the people away into Babylon. But in the
first year of Cyrus the king of Babylon the same king
Cvrus made a decree to build this house of God. And
the vessels also of gold and silver of the house of God,
which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was
in Jerusalem, and brought them into the temple of
Babylon, those did Cyrus the king take out of the
temple of Babylon, and they were delivered unto one,
whose name w^as Sheshbazzar, whom he had made
governor; and said unto him, Take these vessels, go,
carry them into the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let
the house of God be builded in its place. Then came
the same Sheshbazzar, and laid the foundation of the
house of God which is in Jerusalem : and since that time
even until now hath it been in building, and yet it is not
finished. Now therefore, if it seem good to the king,
let there be search made in the king's treasure house,
which is there at Babylon, whether it be so, that a
decree was made of Cyrus the king to build this house
of God at Jerusalem, and let the king send his pleasure
to us concerning this matter."
Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was
made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were
laid up in Babylon. And there was found at Achmetha,
in the palace that is in the province of the Medes, a roll,
and therein was a record thus written :■ — ■
" In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the
king made a decree concerning the house of God at
Jerusalem, Let the house be builded, the place where
they offered sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof
be strongly laid ; the height thereof threescore cubits,
and tlie breadth thereof threescore cubits ; with three
rows of great stones, and a row of new timber : and let
the expenses be given out of the king's house : and also
let the golden and silver vessels of the house of God,
which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple
which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be
restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at
Jerusalem, every one to its place, and place them in the
house of God.
" Now therefore, Tatnai, governor beyond the River,
364 EZRA [vi. 7-17
Shethar-boznai, and your companions the Apharsach-
ites, which are beyond the River, be ye far from thence:
let the work of this house of God alone ; let the governor
of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house
of God in its place.
" Moreover I make a decree what ye shall do to the
elders of these Jews for the building of this house of
God : that of the king's goods, even of the tribute
beyond the River, forthwith expenses be given unto
these men, that they be not hindered. And that which
they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and
lambs, for the burnt offerings of the God of heaven,
wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the appointment
of the priests which are at Jerusalem, let it be given
them day by day without fail : that they may offer
sacrifices of sweet savours unto the God of heaven, and
pray for the life of the king, and of his sons.
"Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall
alter this word, let timber be pulled down from his
house, and being set up, let him be hanged thereon ;
and let his house be made a dunghill for this. And the
God that hath caused His name to dwell there destroy
all kings and people, that shall put to their hand to alter
and to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem.
I Darius have made a decree ; let it be done with speed. ' '
Then Tatnai, governor on this side the River, Shethar-
boznai, and their companions, according to that which
Darius the king had sent, so they did speedily. And
the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered
through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and
Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded, and
finished it, according to the commandment of the God
of Israel, and according to the commandment of Cyrus,
and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. And this
house was finished on the third day of the month Adar,
which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the
king.
And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites,
and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the
dedication of this house of God with joy, and offered at
the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks,
two hundred rams, four hundred lambs ; and for a sin
vi. i8— vii. lo] EZRA 365
offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the
number of the tribes of Israel. And they set the priests
in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for
the service of God, which is at Jerusalem ; as it is
written in the book of Moses,
And the children of the captivity kept the passover
upon the fourteenth day of the first month. For the
priests and the Levites were purified together, all of
them were pure, and killed the passover for all the chil-
dren of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests,
and for themselves. And the children of Israel, which
were come again out of captivity, and all such as had
separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of
the heathen of the land, to seek the Lord God of Israel,
did eat, and kept the feast of unleavened bread seven
days with joy : for the Lord had made them joyful, and
turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to
strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God,
the God of Israel.
Now after these things, in the reign of Artaxerxes
king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, the son of
Azariah, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Shallum, the
son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub, the son of Amariah,
the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth, the son of
Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki, the son
of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar,
the son of Aaron the chief priest : this Ezra went up
from Babylon ; and he was a ready scribe in the law of
Moses, which the Lord God of Israel had given : and
the king granted him all his request, according to the
hand of the Lord his God upon him. And there went up
some of the children of Israel, and of the priests, and
the Levites, and the singers, and the porters, and the
Nethinim, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Arta-
xerxes the king. And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth
month, which was in the seventh year of the king. For
upon the first day of the first month began he to go up
from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month
came he to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of
his God upon him. For Ezra had prepared his heart
to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach
in Israel statutes and judgments.
366 EZRA [vii. 11-23
Now this is the copy of the letter that the king Arta-
xerxes gave unto Ezra the priest, the scribe, even a
scribe of the words of the commandments of the Lord,
and of His statutes to Israel : —
" Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a
scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace,
and at such a time.
" I make a decree, that all they of the people of Israel,
and of its priests and Levites, in my realm, which are
minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem, go
with thee. Forasmuch as thou art sent of the king, and
of his seven counsellors, to enquire concerning Judah
and Jerusalem, according to the law of thy God which
is in thine hand ; and to carry the silver and gold, which
the king and his counsellors have freely offered unto
the God of Israel, whose habitation is in Jerusalem, and
all the silver and gold that thou canst find in all the
province of Babylon, with the freewill offering of the
people, and of the priests, offered willingly for the house
of their God which is in Jerusalem : that thou mayest
buy speedily with this money bullocks, rams, lambs,
with their meal offerings and their drink offerings, and
offer them upon the altar of the house of your God
which is in Jerusalem. And whatsoever shall seem good
to thee, and to thy brethren, to do with the rest of the
silver and the gold, that do after the will of your God.
The vessels also that are given thee for the service of
the house of thy God, those deliver thou before the God
of Jerusalem. And whatsoever more shall be needful for
the house of thy God, which thou shalt have occasion to
bestow, bestow it out of the king's treasure house.
" And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a
decree to all the treasurers which are beyond the river,
that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law
of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done
speedily, unto an hundred talents of silver, and to an
hundred measures of wheat, and to an hundred baths
of wine, and to an hundred baths of oil, and salt without
prescribing how much. Whatsoever is commanded bv
the God of heaven, let it be diligently done for the house
of the God of heaven : for why should there be wrath
against the realm of the king and his sons?
vii. 24— viii. 12] EZRA 367
"Also we certify you, that touching any of the
priests and Levites, singers, porters, Nethinim, or
ministers of this house of God, it shall not be lawful to
impose toll, tribute, or custom, upon them.
" And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, that
is in thine hand, set magistrates and judges, which may
judge all the people that are beyond the River, all such
as know the laws of thy God ; and teach ye them that
know them not. And whosoever will not do the law of
thy God, and the law of the king, let judgment be exe-
cuted speedily upon him, whether it be unto death, or
to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to
imprisonment. "
Blessed be the Lord God of our fathers, which hath
put such a thing as this in the king's heart, to beautify
the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem : and hath
extended mercy unto me before the king, and his coun-
sellors, and before all the king's mighty princes. And
I was strengthened as the hand of the Lord my God
was upon me, and I gathered together out of Israel
chief men to go up with me.
Now these are the heads of their fathers' houses, and
this the genealogy of them that went up with me from
Babylon, in the reign of Artaxerxes the king. Of the
sons of Phinehas ; Gershom : of the sons of Ithamar ;
Daniel : of the sons of David ; Hattush. Of the sons of
Shechaniah, of the sons of Pharosh ; Zechariah : and
with him were reckoned by genealogy of the males an
hundred and fifty. Of the sons of Pahath-moab ; Elihoe-
nai the son of Zerahiah, and with him two hundred
males. Of the sons of Shechaniah ; the son of Jahaziel,
and with him three hundred males. Of the sons also of
Adin ; Ebed the son of Jonathan, and with him fifty
males. And of the sons of Elam ; Jeshaiah the son of
Athaliah, and with him seventy males. And of the
sons of Shephatiah ; Zebadiah the son of Michael, and
Vv'ith him fourscore males. Of the sons of Joab ; Oba-
diah the son of Jehiel, and with him two hundred and
eighteen males. And of the sons of .Shelomith ; the son
of Josiphiah, and with him an hundred and threescore
males. And of the sons of Bebai ; Zechariah the son of
Bebai, and with him twenty and eight males. And of
368 EZRA [viii. 13-25
the sons of Azgad ; Johanan the son of Hakkatan, and
with him an hundred and ten males. And of the last
sons of Adonikam, whose names are these, Eliphelet,
Jeiel, and Shemaiah, and with them threescore males.
Of the sons also of Bigvai ; Uthai, and Zabbud, and
with them seventy males.
And I gathered them together to the river that run-
neth to Ahava ; and there abode we in tents three days :
and I viewed the people, and the priests, and found
there none of the sons of Levi. Then sent I for Eliezer,
for Ariel, for Shemaiah, and for Elnathan, and for Jarib,
and for Elnathan, and for Nathan, and for Zechariah,
and for Meshullam, chief men ; also for Joiarib, and for
Elnathan, men of understanding. And I sent them with
commandment unto Iddo the chief at the place Casiphia,
and I told them what they should say unto Iddo, and
to his brethren the Nethinim, at the place Casiphia, that
they should bring unto us ministers for the house of our
God. And by the good hand of our God upon us they
brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of
Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel; and Sherebiah,
with his sons and his brethren, eighteen ; and Hasha-
biah, and with him Jeshaiah of the sons of Merari, his
brethren and their sons, twenty; also of the Nethinim,
whom David and the princes had appointed for the
service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nethi-
nim : all of them were expressed by name.
Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava,
that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek
of Him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and
for all our substance. For I was ashamed to require
of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us
against the enemy in the way : because we had spoken
unto the king, saying : — " The hand of our God is upon
all them for good that seek Him ; but His power and
His wrath is against all them that forsake Him." So
we fasted and besought our God for this : and He was
intreated of us.
Then I separated twelve of the chief of the priests,
Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brethren with
them, and weighed unto them the silver, and the gold,
and the vessels, even the offering of the house of our
viii. 26— ix. I] EZRA 369
God, which the king, and his counsellors, and his lords,
and all Israel there present, had offered : I even weighed
unto their hand six hundred and fifty talents of silver,
and silver vessels an hundred talents, and of gold an
hundred talents ; also twenty basons of gold, of a thou-
sand drams ; and two vessels of fine copper, precious as
gold. And I said unto them : — " Ye are holy unto the
Lord ; the vessels are holy also ; and the silver and the
gold are a freewill offering unto the Lord God of your
fathers. Watch ye, and keep them, until ye weigh
them before the chief of the priests and the Levites, and
chief of the fathers of Israel, at Jerusalem, in the cham-
bers of the house of the Lord."
So took the priests and the Levites the weight of the
silver, and the gold, and the vessels, to bring them to
Jerusalem unto the house of our God. Then we de-
parted from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the
first month, to go unto Jerusalem : and the hand of our
God was upon us, and He delivered us from the hand
of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way.
And we came to Jerusalem, and abode there three days.
Now on the fourth day was the silver and the gold
and the vessels weighed in the house of our God by the
hand of Merem.oth the son of Uriah the priest ; and with
him was Eleazar the son of Phinehas ; and with them
was Jozabad the son of Jeshua, and Noadiah the son of
Binnui, Levites ; bv number and by weight of every one :
and all the weight was written at that time. Also the
children of those that had been carried away, which were
come out of the captivity, offered burnt offerings unto
the God of Israel, twelve bullocks for all Israel, ninety
and six rams, seventy and seven lambs, twelve he goats
for a sin offering : all this was a burnt offering unto the
Lord. And they delivered the king's commissions unto
the king's lieutenants, and to the governors on this side
the River : and they furthered the people, and the house
of God.
Now when these things were done, the princes came
to me, saying : — " The people of Israel, and the priests,
and the Levites, have not separated themselves from
the people of the lands, doing according to their abomin-
ations, even of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Periz-
370 EZRA [ix. 2-12
zites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the
Egyptians, and the Amorites. For they have taken of
their daughters for themselves, and for their sons : so
that the holy seed have mingled themselves with the
people of those lands : yea, the hand of the princes and
rulers hath been chief in this trespass." And when T
heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle,
and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard,
and sat down astonied. Then were assembled unto me
every one that trembled at the words of the God of
Israel, because of the transgression of those that had
been carried away ; and I sat astonied until the evening
sacrifice.
And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heavi-
ness ; and having rent my garment and my mantle, I
fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the
Lord my God, and said : — " O my God, I am ashamed
and blush to lift up my face to Thee, my God : for our
iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass
is grown up unto the heavens. Since the days of our
fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this dav ;
and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our
priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the
lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to
confusion of face, as it is this day. And now for a little
space grace hath been shewed from the Lord our God,
to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in
His holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and
give us a little reviving in our bondage. For we were
bondmen ; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our
bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the sight
of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the
house of our God, and to repair the desolations thereof,
and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem. And
now, O our God, what shall we say after this? for we
have forsaken Thy commandments, which Thou hast
commanded by Thy servants the prophets, saying, The
land, unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land
with the filthiness of the people of the lands, with their
abominations, which have filled it from one end to
another with their uncleanness. Now therefore give not
your daughters unto their sons, neither take their
ix. 13— X. 8] EZRA 371
daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace or their
wealth for ever : that ye may be strong, and eat the
good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your
children for ever. And after all that is come upon us
for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass, seeing
that Thou our God hast punished us less than our
iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliverance
as this; should we again break Thy commandments,
and join in affinity with the people of these abomina-
tions? wouldest not Thou be angry with us till Thou
hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant
nor escaping? O Lord God of Israel, Thou art right-
eous : for we remain yet escaped, as it is this day :
behold, we are before Thee in our trespasses : for we
cannot stand before Thee because of this."
Now when Ezra had prayed, and when he had con-
fessed, weeping and casting himself down before the
house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a
very great congregation of men and v/omen and chil-
dren : for the people wept very sore. And Shechaniali
the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and
said unto Ezra: — "We have trespassed against our
God, and have taken strange wives of the people of the
land : yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this
thing. Now therefore let us make a covenant with our
God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of
them, according to the counsel of my lord, and of those
that tremble at the commandment of our God ; and let
it be done according to the law. Arise ; for this matter
belongeth unto thee : we also will be with thee : be of
good courage, and do it." Then arose Ezra, and made
the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear
that they should do according to this word. And they
sware.
Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and
went into the chamber of Johanan the son of Eliashib :
and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor
drink water : for he mourned because of the transgres-
sion of them that had been carried away. And they
made proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem
unto all the children of the captivity, that they should
gather themselves together unto Jerusalem; and th->t
372 EZRA [x. 9-19
whosoever would not come within three days, according
to the counsel of the princes and the elders, all his sub-
stance should be forfeited, and himself separated from
the congregation of those that had been carried away.
Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered
themselves together unto Jerusalem within three days.
It was the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the
month ; and all the people sat in the street of the house
of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the
great rain. And Ezra the priest stood up, and said
unto them: — " Ye have transgressed, and have taken
strange wives, to increase the trespass of Israel. Now
therefore make confession unto the Lord God of your
fathers, and do His pleasure : and separate yourselves
from the people of the land, and from the strange
wives." Then all the congregation answered and said
with a loud voice: — " As thou hast said, so must we
do. But the people are many, and it is a time of much
rain, and we are not able to stand without, neither is
this a work of one day or two : for we are many that
have transgressed in this thing. Let now our rulers of
all the congregation stand, and let all them which have
taken strange wives in our cities come at appointed
times, and with them the elders of every city, and the
judges thereof, until the fierce wrath of our God for this
matter be turned from us."
Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahaziah the
son of Tikvah stood up against this matter ; and
Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite helped them.
And the children of the captivity did so. And Ezra
the priest, with certain chief of the fathers, after the
house of their fathers, and all of them by their names,
were separated, and sat down in the first day of the
tenth month to examine the matter. And they made an
end with all the men that had taken strange wives by
the first day of the first month.
And among the sons of the priests there were found
that had taken strange wives : namely, of the sons of
Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren ; Maaseiah,
and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah. And they gave
their hands that they would put away their wives ; and
being guilty, they offered a ram of the flock for their
X. 20-44] EZRA 373
trespass. And of the sons of Immer; Hanani, and
Zebadiah. And of the sons of Harim ; Maaseiah, and
EHjah, and Shemaiah, and Jehiel, and Uzziah. And of
the sons of Pashur ; Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Ne-
thaneel, Jozabad, and Elasah. Also of the Levites ;
Jozabad, and Shimei, and Kelaiah, (the same is KeHta,)
Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer. Of the singers also ;
Ehashib : and of the porters ; Shallum, and Telem, and
Uri. Moreover of Israel: of the sons of Parosh ; Ra-
miah, and Jeziah, and Malchiah, and Miamin, and
Eleazar, and Malchijah, and Benaiah. And of the sons
of Elam ; Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi,
and Jeremoth, and Eliah. And of the sons of Zattu ;
Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and Za-
bad, and Aziza. Of the sons also of Bebai ; Jehohanan,
Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai. And of the sons of
Bani ; Meshullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and
Sheal, and Ramoth. And of the sons of Pahath-moab;
Adna, and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Be-
zaleel, and Binnui, and Manasseh. And of the sons of
Harim ; Eliezer, Ishijah, Malchiah, Shemaiah, Shimeon,
Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah. Of the sons of
Hashum; Mattenai, Mattathah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jere-
mai, Manasseh, and Shimei. Of the sons of Bani ; Maa-
dai, Amram, and Uel, Benaiah, Bedeiah, Cheluhi, Va-
niah, Meremoth, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Mattenai, and
Jaasau, and Bani, and Binnui, Shimei, and Shelemiah,
and Nathan, and Adaiah, Machnadebai, Shashai, Sha-
rai, Azareel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah, Shallum, Ama-
riah, and Joseph. Of the sons of Nebo ; Jeiel, Matti-
thiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jadau, and Joel, Benaiah.
All these had taken strange wives : and some of them
had wives by whom they had children.
THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH
The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah.
And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the
twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace, that
Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men
of Judah ; and I asked them concerning the Jews that
had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and con-
cerning Jerusalem. And they said unto me : — " The
remnant that are left of the captivity there in the pro-
vince are in great affliction and reproach : the wall of
Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are
burned with fire."
And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that
I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and
fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, and said :
— " I beseech Thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great
and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for
them that love Him and observe His commandments :
let Thine ear now be attentive, and Thine eyes open,
that Thou mayest hear the prayer of Thy servant, which
I pray before Thee now, day and night, for the children
of Israel Thy servants, and confess the sins of the
children of Israel, which we have sinned against Thee :
both I and my father's house have sinned. We have
dealt very corruptly against Thee, and have not kept
the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments,
which Thou commandedst Thy servant Moses. Remem.-
ber, I beseech Thee, the word that Thou commandedst
Thy servant Moses, saying. If ye transgress, I will scat-
ter you abroad among the nations : but if ye turn unto
Me, and keep My commandments, and do them ; though
there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of
the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will
bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set My
name there. Now these are Thy servants and Thy
people, whom Thou hast redeemed by Thy great power,
and by Thy strong hand. O Lord, I beseech Thee, let
374
[i.i-ii] NEHEMIAH 375
now Thine ear be attentive to the prayer of Thy servant,
and to the prayer of Thy servants, who desire to fear
Thv name : and prosper,' I pray Thee, Thy servant this
day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man."
For I was the king-'s cupbearer.
And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twenti-
eth vear of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before
him': and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king.
Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence.
Wherefore the king said unto me :— " Why is thy coun-
tenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing
else but sorrow of heart. " Then I was very sore afraid,
and said unto the king :— " Let the king Hve for ever :
why should not my countenance be sad, when the city,
the place of my fathers' sepulchres, lieth waste, and
the gates thereof are consumed with fire?"
Then the king said unto me : — " For what dost thou
make request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven.
And I said unto the king :— " If it please the king, and
if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou
wouidest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my
fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it." And the king
said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) " For how
long shall thv journey be? and when wilt thou return?"
So it pleased the king to send me ; and I set him a time.
Moreover I said unto the king : — " If it please the king,
let letters be given me to the governors beyond the
River, that they may convey me over till I come into
judah ; and a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king's
forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for
the gates of the palace which appertained to the house,
and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I
shall enter into." And the king granted me, according
to the good hand of my God upon me.
Then I came to the governors beyond the River, and
gave them the king's letters. Now the king had sent
captains of the army and horsemen with me. When
Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the
Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that
there was come a man to seek the welfare of the chil-
dren of Israel.
So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days.
376 NEHEMIAH [ii. 12— iii. 4
And I arose in the night, I and some few men with
me ; neither told I any man what my God had put in
my heart to do at Jerusalem : neither was there any
beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon. And
I Avent out by night by the Gate of the Valley, even
before the Dragon \\'ell, and to the Dung Port, and
viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken dov%n,
and the gates thereof were consumed with fire. Then I
went on to the Gate of the Fountain, and to the King's
Pool : but there was no place for the beast that was
under me to pass. Then went I up in the night by the
brook, and viewed the wall, and turned back, and
entered by the Gate of the Valley, and so returned. And
the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did ;
neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the
priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the
rest that did the work.
Then said I unto them : — " Ye see the distress that
we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates
thereof are burned with fire : come, and let us build up
the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach."
Then I told them of the hand of my God which was
good upon me; as also the king's words that he had
spoken unto me. And they said : — " Let us rise up and
build." So they strengthened their hands for this good
work. But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah
the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian,
heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and
said: — "What is this thing that ye do? will ye rebel
against the king?" Then answered I them,, and said
unto them : — " The God of heaven, He will prosper us ;
therefore we His servants will arise and build : but ye
have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem. "
Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren
the priests, and they builded the Sheep Gate; they sancti-
fied it, and set up the doors of it ; even unto the Tower
of Meah they sanctified it, unto the Tower of Hananeel.
And next unto him builded the men of Jericho. And
next to them builded Zaccur the son of Imri. But the
Fish Gate did the sons of Hassenaah build, who also laid
the beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, the
locks thereof, and the bars thereof. And next unto
Hi. 5-17] NEHEMIAH 377
them repaired Meremoth the son of Urijah, the son of
Koz. And next unto them repaired Meshullam the son
of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabeel. And next unto
them repaired Zadok the son of Baana. And next unto
them the Tekoites repaired; but their nobles put not
their necks to the work of their Lord. Moreover the Old
Gate repaired Jehoiada the son of Paseah, and Meshul-
lam the son of Besodeiah ; they laid the beams thereof,
and set up the doors thereof, and the locks thereof,
and the bars thereof. And next unto them repaired
Melatiah the Gibeonite, and Jadon the Meronothite, the
men of Gibeon, and of Mizpah, unto the Throne of the
Governor on this side the river. Next unto him repaired
Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, of the goldsm.iths. Next
unto him also repaired Hananiah the son of one of the
apothecaries, and they fortified Jerusalem unto the
Broad Wall. And next unto them repaired Rephaiah
the son of Hur, the ruler of the half part of Jerusalem.
And next unto them repaired Jedaiah the son of Haru-
inaph, even over against his house. And next unto him
repaired Hattush the son of Hashabniah. Malchijah
the son of Harim, and Hashub the son of Pahath-moab,
repaired the other piece, and the Tower of the Furnaces.
And next unto him repaired Shallum the son of Halo-
hesh, the ruler of the half part of Jerusalem, he and his
daughters. The Valley Gate repaired Hanun, and the
inhabitants of Zanoah ; they built it, and set up the
doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof,
and a thousand cubits on the wall unto the Dung Gate.
But the Dung Gate repaired Malchiah the son of Rechab,
the ruler of part of Beth-haccerem ; he built it, and set
up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars
thereof. But the Gate of the Fountain repaired Shallun
the son of Col-hozeh, the ruler of part of Mizpah ; he
Ijuilt it, and covered it, and set up the doors thereof, the
locks thereof, and the bars thereof, and the wall of the
pool of Siloah by the king's garden, and unto the stairs
that go down from the city of David. After him re-
paired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the
lialf part of Beth-zur, unto the place over against the
sepulchres of David, and to the pool that was made, and
unto the house of the mighty. After him repaired the
378 NEHEMIAH [iii. i8— iv. i
Levites, Rehum the son of Bani. Next unto him re-
paired Hashabiah, the ruler of the half part of Keilah,
in his part. After him repaired their brethren, Bavai
the son of Henadad, the ruler of the half part of Keilah.
And next to him repaired Ezer the son of Jeshua, the
ruler of Mizpah, another piece over against the going
up to the armoury at the turning of the wall. After him
Baruch the son of Zabbai earnestly repaired the other
piece, from the turning of the wall unto the door of the
house of Eliashib the high priest. After him repaired
Meremoth the son of Urijah the son of Koz another
piece, from the door of the house of Eliashib even to
the end of the house of Eliashib. And after him re-
paired the priests, the men of the plain. After him
repaired Benjamin and Hashub over against their house.
After him repaired Azariah the son of Maaseiah the son
of Ananiah by liis house. After him repaired Binnui the
son of Henadad another piece, from the house of Azariah
unto the turning of the wall, even unto the corner. Palal
the son of Uzai, over against the turning of the wall,
and the tower which lieth out from the king's high
house, that was by the court of the prison. After him
Pedaiah the son of Parosh. Moreover the Nethinim
dwelt in Ophel, unto the place over against the Water
Gate toward the east, and the tower that lieth out.
After them the Tekoites repaired another piece, over
against the great tower that lieth out, even unto the
v.'all of Ophel. From above the Horse Gate repaired the
priests, every one over against his house. After them
repaired Zadok the son of Immer over against his house.
After him repaired also Shemaiah the son of Shechaniah,
the keeper of the East Gate. After him repaired Hana-
niah the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun the sixth son of
Zalaph, another piece. After him repaired Ivleshullam
the son of Berechiah over against his chamber. After
him repaired Malchiah the goldsmith's son unto the
place of the Nethinim, and of the merchants, over
against the gate Miphkad, and to the going up of the
corner. And between the going up of the corner unto
the Sheep Gate repaired the goldsmiths and the
merchants.
But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that
iv. 2-14] NEHEMIAH 379
we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great in-
dignation, and mocked the Jews. And he spake before
his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said : —
" What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify them-
selves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a
day ? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of
the rubbish which are burned?" Now Tobiah the Am-
monite was by him, and he said: — " Even that which
they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their
stone wall." Hear, O our God; for we are despised:
and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give
them for a prey in the land of captivity : and cover not
their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from
before Thee : for they have provoked Thee to anger
before the builders.
So built we the wall ; and all the wall was joined
together unto the half thereof : for the people had a
mind to work. But it came to pass, that when Sanballat,
and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and
the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were
made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped,
then they were very wroth, and conspired all of them
together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to
hinder it. Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our
God, and set a watch against them day and night, be-
cause of them. And Judah said : — " The strength of the
bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rub-
bish; so that we are not able to build the wall." And
our adversaries said : — " They shall not know, neither
see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay
them, and cause the work to cease." And it came to
pass, that when the Jews which dwelt by them came,
they said unto us ten tim^es over, from all places : — " Ye
must return to us." Therefore set I in the lower places
behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the
people after their families with their swords, their
spears, and their bows. And I looked, and rose up,
and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the
rest of the people : — " Be not ye afraid of them : remem-
ber the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for
your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your
wives, and your houses."
38o NEHEMIAH [iv. i5_v. 5
And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that
it was known unto us, and God had brought their
counsel to nought, that we returned all of us to the
wall, every one unto his work. And it came to pass
from that time forth, that the half of my servants
wrought in the work, and the other half of them held
both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats
of mail ; and the rulers were behind all the house of
Judah. They which builded on the wall, and they that
bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one
of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other
hand held a weapon. For the builders, every one had
his sword girded by his side, and so builded. And he
that sounded the trumpet was by me. And I said unto
the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of
the people: — "The work is great and large, and
we are separated upon the wall, one far from another.
In what place therefore ye hear the sound of the
trumpet, resort ye thither unto us : our God shall fight
for us."
So we laboured in the work : and half of them held
the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars
appeared. Likewise at the same time said I unto the
people : — " Let every one with his servant lodge within
Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a guard to us,
and labour on the day." So neither I, nor my brethren,
nor my servants, nor the men of the guard which fol-
lowed me, none of us put off our clothes, saving that
every one put them off for washing.
And there was a great cry of the people and of their
wives against their brethren the Jews. For there were
that said: — "We, our sons, and our daughters, are
many: let us get corn, that we may eat, and live."
Some also there were that said : — " We have morto-ao-ed
our lands, vineyards, and houses, that we might buy
com, because of the dearth." There were also that
said: — "We have borrowed money for the kino-'s
tribute upon our lands and vineyards. Yet now our
fiesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their
children : and, lo, we bring into bondage our sons and
our daughters to be servants, and some of our daughters
are brought unto bondage already : neither is it in our
V. 6-i6] NEHEMIAH 381
power to help it ; for other men have our lands and
vineyards. "
And I was very angry when I heard their cry and
these words. Then I consulted with myself, and I re-
buked the nobles, and the rulers, and said unto them : —
"Ye exact usury, every one of his brother." And
I set a great assembly against them. And I said unto
them : — ■" We after our ability have redeemed our
brethren the Jews, which were sold unto the heathen;
and will ye even sell your brethren? or shall they be
sold unto us?" Then held they their peace, and found
nothing to answer. Also I said : — " It is not good that
ye do : ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God be-
cause of the reproach of the heathen our enem.ies ? I
likev/ise, and my brethren, and my servants, might exact
of them money and corn : I pray you, let us leave off this
usury. Restore, I pray you, to them, even this day,
their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their
houses, also the hundredth part of the money, and of the
corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them."
Then said they : — " We will restore them, and will re-
quire nothing of them; so will we do as thou sayest. "
Then I called the priests, and took an oath of them,
that they should do according to this promise. Also I
shook Tuy lap, and said : — " So God shake out every
man from his house, and from his labour, that per-
formeth not this promise, even thus be he shaken out,
and emptied." And all the congregation said: —
"Amen," and praised the Lord. And the people did
according to this promise.
Moreover from the time that I was appointed to be
their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth
year even unto the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxos
the king, that is, twelve years, I and my brethren have
not eaten the bread of the governor. But the former
governors that had been before me were chargeable
unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine,
at the rate of forty shekels of silver daily ; yea, even
their servants lorded it over the people : but so did not
I, because of the fear of God. Yea, also I continued in
the work of this wall, neither bought we any land : and
all my servants were gathered thither unto the work.
382 NEHEMIAH [v. 17— vi. 10
Moreover there were at my table an hundred and fifty of
the Jews and rulers, beside those that came unto us
from among the heathen that are about us. Now that
which was prepared for me daily was one ox and six
choice sheep ; also fowls were prepared for me, and once
in ten days store of all sorts of wine : yet for all this
required not I the bread of the governor, because the
bondage was heavy upon this people. Think upon me,
my God, for good, according to all that I have done for
this people.
Now it came to pass, when Sanballat, and Tobiah,
and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies,
heard that I had builded the wall, and that there was
no breach left therein ; (though at that time I had not
set up the doors upon the gates ;) that Sanballat and
Geshem sent unto me, saying: — "Come, let us meet
together in some one of the villages in the plain of
Ono. " But they thought to do me mischief. And I
sent messengers unto them, saying: — " I am doing a
great work, so that I cannot come down : why should
the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to
you?" Yet they sent unto me four times after this sort ;
and I answered them after the same manner. Then sent
Sanballat his servant unto me in like manner the fifth
time with an open letter in his hand ; wherein was
written : — " It is reported among the heathen, and
Gashmu saith it, that thou and the Jews think to rebel :
for which cause thou buildest the wall, that thou mayest
be their king, according to these words. And thou hast
also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem,
saying. There is a king in Judah : and now shall it be
reported to the king according to these words. Come
now therefore, and let us take counsel together. " Then
I sent unto him, saying : — " There are no such things
done as thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine
own heart." For they all made us afraid, saying: —
" Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it
be not done." Now therefore, O God, strengthen my
hands.
Afterward I ci.me unto the house of Shemaiah the son
of Delaiah the son of Mehetabeel, who was shut up ; and
he said : — " Let us meet together in the house of God,
vi. II— vii. 5] NEHEMIAH 383
within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the
temple : for they will come to slay thee ; yea, in the
night will they come to slay thee." And I said : —
" Should such a man as I flee? and who is there, that,
being as I am, would go into the temple to save his life?
I will not go in." And, lo, I perceived that God had
not sent him ; but that he pronounced this prophecy
against me : for Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.
Therefore was he hired, that I should be afraid, and do
so, and sin, and that they might have matter for an evil
report, that they might reproach me. My God, think
Thou upon Tobiah and Sanballat according to these
their works, and on the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest
of the prophets, that would have put me in fear.
So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day
of the month Elul, in fifty and two days. And it came
to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and
all the heathen that were about us saw these things,
they were much cast down in their own eyes : for they
perceived that this work was wrought of our God.
Moreover in those days the nobles of Judah sent many
letters unto Tobiah, and the letters of Tobiah came unto
them. For there were many in Judah sworn unto him,
because he was the son in law of Shechaniah the son of
Arab ; and his son Johanan had taken the daughter of
Meshullam the son of Berechiah. Also they reported
his good deeds before me, and uttered my words to him.
And Tobiah sent letters to put me in fear.
Now it came to pass, when the wall was built, and I
had set up the doors, and the porters and the singers
and the Levites were appointed, that I gave my brother
Hanani, and Hananiah the ruler of the palace, charge
over Jerusalem : for he was a faithful man, and feared
God above many. And I said unto them : — " Let not
the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun be hot ;
and while they stand by, let them shut the doors, and
bar them : and appoint watches of the inhabitants of
Jerusalem, every one in his watch, and every one to be
over against his house." Now the city was large and
great : but the people were few therein, and the houses
were not builded.
And my God put into mine heart to gather together
384 NEHEMIAH [vii. 6-34
the nobles, and the rulers, and the people, that they j
might be reckoned by genealogy. And I found a regis- j
ter of the genealogy of them which came up at the first, ]
and found written therein : —
"These are the children of the province, that went '
up out of the captivity, of those that had been carried
away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had
carried away, and came again to Jerusalem and to Judah,
every one unto his city, who came with Zerubbabel,
" Jeshua, Nehemiah,' Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani,
Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, Baanah.
"The number of the men of the people of Israel
was this ; the children of Parosh, two thousand an hun-
dred seventy and two. The children of Shephatiah,
three hundred seventy and two. The children of Arab,
six hundred fifty and two. The children of Pahath-moab,
of the children of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand and
eight hundred and eighteen. The children of Elam, a
thousand two hundred fifty and four. The children
of Zattu, eight hundred forty and five. The children of
Zaccai, seven hundred and threescore. The children
of Binnui, six hundred forty and eight. The children of
Bebai, six hundred twenty and eight. The children
of Azgad, two thousand three hundred twenty and two.
The children of Adonikam, six hundred threescore and
seven. The children of Bigvai, two thousand threescore
and seven. The children of Adin, six hundred fifty and
five. The children of Ater of Hezekiah, ninety and
eight. The children of Hashum, three hundred twenty
and eight. The children of Bezai, three hundred twenty
and four. The children of Hariph, an hundred and
twelve. The children of Gibeon, ninety and five. The
men of Beth-lehem and Netophah, an hundred fourscore
and eight. The men of Anathoth, an hundred twenty
and eight. The men of Beth-azmaveth, forty and two.
The men of Kirjath-jearim, Chephirah, and Beeroth,
seven hundred forty and three. The men of Ramah and
Gaba, six hundred twenty and one. The men of Mich-
mas, an hundred and twenty and two. The men of Beth-
el and Ai, an hundred twenty and three. The men of the
other Nebo, fifty and two. The children of the other
Elam, a thousand two hundred fifty and four. The
vii. 35-61] NEHEMIAH 385
children of Harim, three hundred and twenty. The chil-
dren of Jericho, three hundred forty and five. The chil-
dren of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred twenty
and one. The children of Senaah, three thousand nine
hundred and thirty.
" The priests : the children of Jedaiah, of the house of
Jeshua, nine hundred seventy and three. The children
of Immer, a thousand fifty and two. The children of
Pashur, a thousand two hundred forty and seven. The
children of Harim, a thousand and seventeen.
" The Levites : the children of Jeshua, of Kadmiel,
and of the children of Hodevah, seventy and four.
" The singers : the children of Asaph, an hundred
forty and eight.
" The porters : the children of Shallum, the children of
Ater, the children of Talmon, the children of Akkub, the
children of Hatita, the children of Shobai, an hundred
thirty and eight.
" The Nethinim : the children of Ziha, the children of
Hasupha, the children of Tabbaoth, the children of
Keros, the children of Sia, the children of Padon, the
children of Lebana, the children of Hagaba, the children
of Shalmai, the children of Hanan, the children of Gid-
del, the children of Gahar, the children of Reaiah, the
children of Rezin, the children of Nekoda, the children
of Gazzam, the children of Uzza, the children of Pha-
seah, the children of Besai, the children of Meunim, the
children of Nephishesim, the children of Bakbuk, the
children of Hakupha, the children of Harhur, the chil-
dren of Bazlith, the children of Mehida, the children
of Harsha, the children of Barkos, the children of Sisera,
the children of Tamah, the children of Neziah, the chil-
dren of Hatipha.
" The children of Solomon's servants : the children of
Sotai, the children of Sophereth, the children of Perida,
the children of Jaala, the children of Darkon, the chil-
dren of Giddel, the children of Shephatiah, the children
of Hattil, the children of Pochereth of Zebaim, the chil-
dren of Amon. All the Nethinim, and the children of
Solomon's servants, were three hundred ninety and two.
" And these were they which went up also from Tel-
melah, Tel-haresha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer : but
VOL. II. o
386 NEHEMIAH [vii. 62— viii. 2
they could not shew their fathers' houses, nor their seed,
whether they were of Israel. The children of Delaiah,
the children of Tobiah, the children of Nekoda, six hun-
dred forty and two. And of the priests : the children of
Habaiah, the children of Koz, the children of Barzillai,
which took one of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite
to wife, and was called after their name. These sought
their register among those that were reckoned by gene-
alogy, but it was not found : therefore were they, as
polluted, put from the priesthood. And the Tirshatha
said unto them, that they should not eat of the most holy
things, till there stood up a priest with Urim and
Thummim.
" The whole congregation together was forty and two
thousand three hundred and threescore, beside their
manservants and their maidservants, of whom there
were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven :
and they had two hundred forty and five singing men
and singing women. Their horses, seven hundred thirty
and six : their mules, two hundred forty and five : their
camels, four hundred thirty and five : six thousand
seven hundred and twenty asses.
" And some of the chief of the fathers gave unto the
work. The Tirshatha gave to the treasure a thousand
drams of gold, fifty basons, five hundred and thirty
priests' garments. And some of the chief of the fathers
gave to the treasure of the work twenty thousand drams
of gold, and two thousand and two hundred pound of
silver. And that which the rest of the people gave was
twenty thousand drams of gold, and two thousand pound
of silver, and threescore and seven priests' garments.
So the priests, and the Levites, and the porters, and
the singers, and some of the people, and the Nethinim,
and all Israel, dwelt in their cities ; and when the
seventh month came, the children of Israel were in their
cities. "
And all the people gathered themselves together as one
man into the street that was before the Water Gate ;
and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book
of the law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded to
Israel. And Ezra the priest brought the law before the
congregation both of men and women, and all that could
viii. 3-13] NEHEMIAH 387
hear with understanding, upon the first day of the
seventh month. And he read therein before the street
that was before the Water Gate from the morning until
midday, before the men and the women, and those that
could understand ; and the ears of all the people were
attentive unto the book of the law. And Ezra the scribe
stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for
the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and
Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkiah, and
Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand,
Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchiah, and Hashum, and
Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam. And Ezra
opened the book in the sight of all the people ; (for he
was above all the people ;) and when he opened it, all
the people stood up : and Ezra blessed the Lord, the
great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen,
with lifting up their hands : and they bowed their heads,
and worshipped the Lord wath their faces to the ground.
Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub,
Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Joza-
bad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people
to understand the law : and the people stood in their
place. So they read in the book in the law of God dis^
tinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to under-
stand the reading.
And Xehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the
priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people,
said unto all the people : — " This day is holy unto the
Lord your God; mourn not, nor weep." For all the
people wept, when they heard the words of the law.
Then he said unto them : — " Go your way, eat the fat,
and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for
whom nothing is prepared : for this day is holy unto our
Lord : neither be ye sorry ; for the joy of the Lord is your
strength. " So the Levites stilled all the people, saying :
— " Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ve
grieved." And all the people went their way to eat, and
to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth,
because they had understood the words that were de-
clared unto them.
And on the second day were gathered together the
chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and
388 NEHEMIAH [viii. 14— ix. 6
the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to understand
the words of the law. And they found written in the
law which the Lord had commanded by Moses, that
the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast
of the seventh month : and that they should publish and
proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying : —
" Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches,
and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm
branches, and branches of thick trees, to m.ake booths,
as it is written. " So the people went forth, and brought
them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the
roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts
of the house of God, and in the street of the Water Gate,
and in the street of the Gate of Ephraim. And all the
congregation of them that were come again out of the
captivity made booths, and sat under the booths : for
since the days of Joshua the son of Nun unto that day
had not the children of Israel done so. And there was
very great gladness. Also day by day, from the first
day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law
of God. And they kept the feast seven days ; and on
the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto
the manner.
Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the
children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with
sackclothes, and earth upon them. And the seed of
Israel separated themselves from all strangers,; and
stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their
fathers. And they stood up in their place, and read in
the book of the law of the Lord their God one fourth
part of the day ; and another fourth part they confessed,
and worshipped the Lord their God.
Then stood up upon the stairs, of the Levites, Jeshua,
and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani,
and Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto the Lord
their God. Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel,
Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and
Pethahiah, said : —
" Stand up and bless the Lord your God for ever and
ever : and blessed be Thy glorious name, which is
exalted above all blessing and praise. Thou, even Thou,
art Lord alone ; Thou hast made heaven, the heaven of
ix. 7-18] NEHEMIAH 389
heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things
that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and
Thou preservest them all ; and the host of heaven wor-
shippeth Thee.
"Thou art the Lord the God, who didst choose
Abram, and broug-htest him forth out of Ur of the Chal-
dees, and gavest him the name of Abraham ; and found-
est his heart faithful before Thee, and madest a covenant
with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites,
the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and
the Girgashites, even to give it to his seed, and hast per-
formed Thy words ; for Thou art righteous : and didst
see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest
their cry by the Red Sea ; and shewedst signs and won-
ders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all
the people of his land : for Thou knewest that they dealt
proudly against them. So didst Thou get Thee a name,
as it is this day. And Thou didst divide the sea before
them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on
the dry land ; and their persecutors Thou threwest into
the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters. Moreover
Thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar ; and in
the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the
way wherein they should go. Thou camest down also
upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven,
and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good
statutes and commandments : and madest known unto
them Thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them pre-
cepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses Thy
servant : and gavest them bread from heaven for their
hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the
rock for their thirst, and promisedst them that they
should go in to possess the land which Thou hadst
sworn to give them. But they and our fathers dealt
proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not
to Thy commandments, and refused to obey, neither
were mindful of Thy wonders that Thou didst among
them ; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion
appointed a captain to return to their bondage : but
Thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest
them not. Yea, when they had made them a molten
390
NEHEMIAH [ix. 19-28
calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out
of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations ; yet
Thou in Thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in
the wilderness : the pillar of the cloud departed not from
them bv day, to lead them in the way ; neither the pillar
of fire by night, to shew them light, and the way wherein
they should go. Thou gavest also Thy good spirit to
instruct them, and withheldest not Thy manna from their
mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst. Yea,
forty years didst Thou sustain them in the wilderness,
so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not
old, and their feet swelled not.
" Moreover Thou gavest them kingdoms and nations,
and didst divide them into corners : so they possessed
the land of vSihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon,
and the land of Og king of Bashan. Their children
also multipliedst Thou as the stars of heaven, and
broughtest them into the land, concerning which Thou
hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to
possess it. So the children went in and possessed the
land, and Thou subduedst before them the inhabitants
of the land, the Canaanites, and gavest them into their
liands, with their kings, and the people of the land, that
they might do with them as they would. And they
took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses
full of all goods, wells digged, vineyards, and olive-
yards, and fruit trees in abundance : so they did eat, and
were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in
Thy great goodness. Nevertheless they were disobedi-
ent, and rebelled against Thee, and cast Thy law behind
their backs, and slew Thy prophets which testified
against them to turn them to Thee, and they wrought
great provocations. Therefore Thou deliveredst them
into the hand of their enemies, who vexed them : and in
the time of their trouble, when they cried unto Thee,
Thou heardest them from heaven ; and according to
Thy manifold mercies Thou gavest them saviours, who
saved them out of the hand of their enemies. But after
they had rest, they did evil again before Thee : therefore
leftest Thou them in the hand of their enemies, so that
they had the dominion over them : yet when they re-
turned, and cried unto Thee, Thou heardest them from
ix. 29— X. 3] NEHEMIAH 39i
heaven ; and many times didst Thou deliver them accord-
ing to Thy mercies; and testifiedst against them, that
Thou mightest bring them again unto Thy law : yet they
dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto Thy command-
ments, but sinned against Thy judgments, (which if a
man do, he shall live in them ;) and withdrew the shoul-
der, and hardened their neck, and would not hear._ Yet
manv years didst Thou bear with them, and testifiedst
against them by Thy spirit in Thy prophets : yet would
they not give ear : therefore gavest Thou them into the
hand of the people of the lands. Nevertheless for Thy
great mercies' sake Thou didst not utterly consume
them, nor forsake them; for Thou art a gracious and
merciful God.
" Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and
the terrible God, who keepest covenant and mercy, let
not all the trouble seem little before Thee, that hath
come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our
priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on
all Thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria
unto this day. Howbeit Thou art just in all that Is
brought upon us ; for Thou hast done right, but we
h.ave done wickedly : neither have our kings, our princes,
our priests, nor our fathers, kept Thy law, nor heark-
ened unto Thy commandments and Thy testimonies,
wherewith Thou didst testify against them. For they
have not served Thee in their kingdom, and in Thy great
goodness that Thou gavest them, and in the large and fat
land which Thou gavest before them, neither turned they
from their wicked works. Behold, we are servants this
day, and as for the land that Thou gavest unto our
fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof,
behold, we are servants in it : and it yieldeth much in-
crease unto the kings whom Thou hast set over us
because of our sins : also they have dominion over our
bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we
are in great distress. And because of all this we make
a sure covenant, and write it; and our princes, Levites,
and priests, seal unto it."
Now those that sealed were,
Nehemiah, the Tirshatha, the son of Hachaliah, and
Zedekiah, Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah, Pashur, Ama-
392 NEHEMIAH [x. 4-34
riah, Malchijah, Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch, Harim,
Meremoth, Obadiah, Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch, Me-
shuUam, Abijah, Mijamin, Maaziah, Bilgai, Shemaiah :
these were the priests.
And the Levites : both Jeshua the son of Azaniah,
Binnui of the sons of Henadad, Kadmiel ; and their
brethren, Shebaniah, Hodijah, KeUta, Pelaiah, Hanan,
Micha, Rehob, Hashabiah, Zaccur, Sherebiah, Sheba-
niah, Hodijah, Bani, Beninu.
The chief of the people; Parosh, Pahath-moab, Elam,
Zatthu, Bani, Bunni, Azgad, Bebai, Adonijah, Bigvai,
Adin, Ater, Hizkijah, Azzur, Hodijah, Hashum, Bezai,
Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai, Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir,
Meshezabeel, Zadok, Jaddua, Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah,
Hoshea, Hananiah, Hashub, Hallohesh, Pileha, Shobek,
Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah, and Ahijah, Hanan,
Anan, Malluch, Harim, Baanah.
And the rest of the people, the priests, the Levites,
the porters, the singers, the Nethinim, and all they that
had separated themselves from the people of the lands
unto the law of God, their wives, their sons, and their
daughters, every one having knowledge, and having
understanding ; they clave to their brethren, their nobles,
and entered into a curse, and into an oath, to walk in
God's law, which was given by Moses the servant of
God, and to observe and do all the commandments of
the Lord our Lord, and His judgments and His statutes ;
and that we would not give our daughters unto the
people of the land, nor take their daughters for our
sons : and if the people of the land bring ware or any
victuals on the sabbath day to sell, that we would not
buy it of them on the sabbath, or on the holy day : and
that we would leave the seventh year, and the exaction
of every debt.
Also we made ordinances for us, to charge ourselves
yearly with the third part of a shekel for the service of
the house of our God; for the shewbread, and for the
continual meal offering, and for the continual burnt
offering, of the sabbaths, of the new moons, for the set
feasts, and for the holy things, and for the sin offerings
to make an atonement for Israel, and for all the work
of the house of our God. And we cast the lots amoner
X. 35— xi.5] NEHEMIAH 393
the priests, the Levites, and the people, for the wood
offering-, to bring- it into the house of our God, after the
houses of our fathers, at times appointed year by year,
to burn upon the altar of the Lord our God, as it is
written in the law : and to bring the firstfruits of our
ground, and the firstfruits of all fruit of all trees, year
by year, unto the house of the Lord : also the firstborn
of our sons, and of our cattle, as it is written in the
law, and the firstlings of our herds and of our flocks,
to bring to the house of our God, unto the priests that
minister in the house of our God : and that we should
bring the firstfruits of our dough, and our offerings, and
the fruit of all manner of trees, of wine and of oil, unto
the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God;
and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites, that the
same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of
cur tillage. And the priest the son of Aaron shall be
with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes : and the
Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the
house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure
house. For the children of Israel and the children of
Levi shall bring the offering of the corn, of the new-
wine, and the oil, unto the chambers, where are the
vessels of the sanctuary, and the priests that minister,
and the porters, and the singers : and we will not for-
sake the house of our God.
And the rulers of the pcbple dwelt at Jerusalem : the
rest of the people also cast lots, to bring one of ten to
dwell in Jerusalem the holy city, and nine parts to dwell
in other cities. And the people blessed all the men, that
willingly offered themselves to dwell at Jerusalem.
Now these are the chief of the province that dwelt in
Jerusalem : but in the cities of Judah dwelt every one in
his fjossession in their cities, to wit, Israel, the priests,
and the Levites, and the Nethinim, and the children of
Solomon's servants. And at Jerusalem dwelt certain of
the children of Judah, and of the children of Benjamin.
Of the children of Judah ; Athaiah the son of Uzziah,
the son of Zechariah, the son of Amariah, the son of
Shcphatiah, the son of Mahalaleel, of the children of
Perez; and Maaseiah the son of Baruch, the son of Col-
hozeh, the son of Hazaiah, the son of Adaiah, the son
O 2
394 NEHEMIAH [xi. 6-22
of Joiarib, the son of Zechariah, the son of Shiloni. All
the sons of Perez that dwelt at Jerusalem were four hun-
dred threescore and eight valiant men. And these are
the sons of Benjamin ; Sallu the son of Meshullam, the
son of Joed, the son of Pedaiah, the son of Kolaiah, the
son of Maaseiah, the son of Ithiel, the son of Jesaiah.
And after him Gabbai, Sallai, nine hundred twenty and
eight. And Joel the son of Zichri was their overseer:
and Judah the son of Senuah was second over the city.
Of the priests : Jedaiah the son of Joiarib, Jachin,
Seraiah the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the
son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub,
was the ruler of the house of God. And their brethren
that did the work of the house were eight hundred
twenty and two : and Adaiah the son of Jeroham, the
son of Pelaliah, the son of Amzi, the son of Zechariah,
the son of Pashur, the son of Malchiah, and his brethren,
chief of the fathers, two hundred forty and two : and
Amashai the son of Azareel, the son of Ahasai, the son
of Meshillemoth, the son of Immer, and their brethren,
mighty men of valour, an hundred twenty and eight :
and their overseer was Zabdiel, the son of one of the
great men.
Also of the Levites : Shemaiah the son of Hashub, the
son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Bunni ;
and Shabbethai and Jozabad, of the chief of the Levites,
had the oversight of the outward business of the house
of God. And Mattaniah the son of Micha, the son of
Zabdi, the son of Asaph, was the principal to begin the
thanksgiving in prayer : and Bakbukiah the second
among his brethren, and Abda the son of Shammua, the
son of Galal, the son of Jeduthun. All the Levites in
the holy city were two hundred fourscore and four.
Moreover the porters, Akkub, Talmon, and their
brethren that kept the gates, were an hundred seventy
and two.
And the residue of Israel, of the priests, and the
Levites, were in all the cities of Judah, every one in his
inheritance. But the Nethinim dwelt in Ophel : and
Ziha and Gispa were over the Nethinim. The overseer
also of the Levites at Jerusalem was Uzzi the son of
Bani, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Mattaniah, the
xi. 23— xii. 14] NEHEMIAH 395
son of Micha. Of the sons of Asaph, the singers were
over the business of the house of God. For it was the
king-'s commandment concerning them, that a certain
portion should be for the singers, due for every day.
And Pethahiah the son of Meshezabeel, of the children
of Zerah the son of Judah, v. as at the king's hand in all
matters concerning the people.
And for the villages, with their fields, some of the
children of Judah dwelt at Kirjath-arba, and in the vil-
lages thereof, and at Dibon, and in the villages thereof,
and at Jekabzeel, and in the villages thereof, and at
Jeshua, and at Moladah, and at Beth-phelet, and at
Hazar-shual, and at Beer-sheba, and in the villages
thereof, and at Ziklag, and at Mekonah, and in the
villages thereof, and at En-rimmon, and at Zareah, and
at Jarmuth, Zanoah, Adullam, and in their villages, at
Lachish, and the fields thereof, at Azekah, and in the
villages thereof. And 'they dwelt from Beer-sheba unto
the valley of Hinnom. The children also of Benjamin
from Geba dwelt at Michmash, and Aija, and Beth-el,
and in their villages, and at Anathoth, Nob, Ananiah,
Hazor, Ramah, Gittaim, Hadid, Zeboim, Neballat, Lod,
and Ono, the valley of craftsmen. And of the Levites
were divisions in Judah and in Benjamin.
Now these are the priests and the Levites that went
up with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua :
Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra, Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,
Shechaniah, Rehum, Meremoth, Iddo, Ginnetho, Abijah,
Miamin, Maadiah, Bilgah, Shemaiah, and Joiarib, Je-
daiah, Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, Jedaiah. These were the
chief of the priests and of their brethren in the days of
Jeshua. Moreover the Levites : Jeshua, Binnui, Kad-
miel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah, which was over
the thanksgiving, he and his brethren. Also Bakbukiah
and Unni, their brethren, were over against them in the
watches.
And Jeshua begat Joiakim, Joiakim also begat Elia-
shib, and Eliashib begat Joiada, and Joiada begat Jona-
than, and Jonathan begat Jaddua. And in the days of
Joiakim were priests, the chief of the fathers : of Sera-
iah, Meraiah ; of Jeremiah, Hananiah ; of Ezra, Meshul-
1am; of Amariah, Jehohanan ; of Melicu, Jonathan; of
396 NEHEMIAH [xii. 15-35
Sliebanlah, Joseph; of Harim, Adna ; of Meraioth, Hel-
kai; of Iddo, Zechariah ; of Ginnethon, Meshullam ; ol
Abijah, Zichri ; of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai ; of
Bilg-ah, Shammua ; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan ; and of
Joiarib, Mattenai ; of Jedaiah, Uzzi ; of Sallai, Kallai ;
of Amok, Eber; of Hilkiah, Hashabiah ; of Jedaiah,
Nethaneel.
The Levites in the days of EHashib, Joiada, and Joha-
nan, and Jaddua, were recorded chief of the fathers :
also the priests, to the reign of Darius the Persian. The
sons of Levi, the chief of the fathers, were written in
the book of the chronicles, even until the days of Joha-
nan the son of Eliashib. And the chief of the Levites :
Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua the son of Kadmiel.
v/ith their brethren over against them, to praise and to
give thanks, according to the commandment of David
the man of God, ward over against ward. Mattaniah,
and Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, Akkub,
were porters keeping the ward at the thresholds of the
gates. These were in the days of Joiakim the son of
Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah
the governor, and of Ezra the priest, the scribe.
And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they
sought the Levites out of all their places, to bring them
to Jerusalem, to keep the dedication with gladness, both
with thanksgivings, and with singing, with cymbals,
psalteries, and with harps. And the sons of the singers
gathered themselves together, both out of the plain
country round about Jerusalem, and from the villages of
Netophathi ; also from the house of Gilgal, and out of
the fields of Geba and Azmaveth : for the singers had
builded them villages round about Jerusalem. And the
priests and the Levites purified themselves, and purified
the people, and the gates, and the wall.
Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall,
and appointed two great companies of them that gave
thanks and went in procession, whereof one went on the
right hand upon the wall toward the Dung Gate : and
after them went Hoshaiah, and half of the princes of
Judah, and Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam, Judah, and
Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah, and certain of
the priests' sons with trumpets; namely, Zechariah the
xif. 36-47] NEHEMIAH 397
son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Matta-
niah, the son of Michaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son
of Asaph : and his brethren, Shemaiah, and Azarael,
Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethaneel, and Judah, Hanani,
with the musical instruments of David the man of God,
and Ezra the scribe before them. And at the Fountain
Gate, which was over ag-ainst them, they went up by the
stairs of the city of David, at the going up of the wall,
above the house of David, even unto the Water Gate
eastward. And the other company of them that gave
thanks went over against them, and I after them, and
the half of the people upon the wall, from beyond the
Tower of the Furnaces even unto the broad wall ; and
from above the Gate of Ephraim, and above the Old
Gate, and above the Fish Gate, and the Tower of Hana-
neel, and the Tower of Meah, even unto the Sheep Gate :
and they stood still in the Prison Gate.
So stood the two companies of them that gave thanks
in the house of God, and I, and the half of the rulers
with me : and the priests ; Eliakim, Maaseiah, Minia-
min, Michaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with
trumpets ; and Maaseiah, and Shemaiah, and Eleazar,
and Uzzi, and Jehohanan, and Malchijah, and Elam,
and Ezer. And the singers sang loud, with Jezrahiah
their overseer. Also that day they offered great sacri-
fices, and rejoiced : for God had made them rejoice with
great joy : the wives also and the children rejoiced : so
that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off.
And at that time were some appointed over the cham-
bers for the treasures, for the offerings, for the first-
fruits, and for the tithes, to gather into them out of the
fields of the cities the portions of the law for the priests
and Levites : for Judah rejoiced for the priests and for
the Levites that waited. And both the singers and the
porters kept the ward of their God, and the ward of the
purification, according to the commandment of David,
and of Solomon his son. For in the days of David and
Asaph of old there were chief of the singers, and songs
of praise and thanksgiving unto God. And all Israel in
the days of Zerubbabel, and in the days of Nehemiah,
gave the portions of the singers and the porters, every
day his portion : and they sanctified holy things unto
398 NEHEMIAH [xiii. 1-13
the Levites; and the Levites sanctified them unto the
children of Aaron.
On that dav they read in the book of Moses in the
audience of the people; and therein was found written,
that the Ammonite and the Moabite should not come
into the congregation of God for ever ; because they met
not the children of Israel with bread and with water,
but hired Balaam against them, that he should curse
them : howbeit our God turned the curse into a blessmg.
Now it came to pass, when they had heard the Jaw, that
they separated from Israel all'the mixed multitude.
And before this, Eliashib the priest, having the over-
sight of the chamber of the house of our God, was allied
unto Tobiah : and he had prepared for him a great
chamber, where aforetime they laid the meal offerings,
the frankincense, and the vessels, and the tithes of the
corn, the new wine, and the oil, which was commanded
to be given to the Levites, and the singers, and the
porters; and the offerings of the priests. But in all
this time was not I at Jerusalem : for in the two and
thirtieth year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon came I
unto the king, and after certain days obtained I leave
of the king : and I came to Jerusalem, and understood
of the evil that Eliashib did for Tobiah, in preparing
hiih a chamber in the courts of the house of God. And
it grieved me sore : therefore I cast forth all the house-
hold stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber. Then I com-
manded, and they cleansed the chambers : and thither
brought I again the vessels of the house of God, with the
meal offering and the frankincense.
And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had
not been given them : for the Levites and the singers,
that did the work, were fled every one to his field. Then
contended I with the rulers, and said: — " Why is the
house of God forsaken?" And I gathered them together,
and set them in their place. Then brought all Judah
the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the oil unto
the treasuries. And I made treasurers over the treas-
uries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and
of the Levites, Pedaiah : and next to them was Hanan
the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah : for they were
counted faithful, and their office was to distribute unto
xiii. 14-26] NEHEMIAH 399
their brethren. Remember me, O my God, concerning
this, and wipe not out my good deeds that I have done
for the house of my God, and for the offices thereof.
In those days saw I in Judah some treading wine-
presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and
lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all
manner of burdens, which they brought unto Jerusalem
on the sabbath day : and I testified against them in the
day wherein they sold victuals. There dwelt men of
Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of
ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah,
and in Jerusalem. Then I contended with the nobles of
Judah, and said unto them : — " What evil thing is this
that ye do, and profane the sabbath day? Did not
your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this
evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more
wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath." And it
came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began
to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the
gates should be shut, and charged that they should not
be opened till after the sabbath : and some of my serv-
ants set I at the gates, ^hat there should no burden be
brought in on the sabbath day. So the merchants and
sellers of all kind of ware lodged without Jerusalem
once or twice. Then I testified against them, and said
unto them : — '* Why lodge ye about the wall? if ye do
so again, I will lay hands on you." From that time
forth came they no more on the sabbath. And I com-
manded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves,
and that they should come and keep the gates, to sanc-
tify the sabbath day. Remember me, O my God,
concerning this also, and spare me according to the
greatness of Thy mercy.
In those days also saw I Jews that had married wives
of Ashdod, of Amnion, and of Moab : and their children
spake half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak
in the Jews' language, but according to the language of
each people. And I contended with them, and cursed
them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their
hair, and made them swear by God, saying : — " Ye shall
not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their
daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves. Did not
400 NEHEMIAH [xiii. 27-31
Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among
many nations was there no king like him, who was
beloved of his God, and God made him king over all
Israel : nevertheless even him did strange women cause
to sin. Shall we then hearken unto you to do all this
great evil, to transgress against our God in marrying
strange wives?"
And one of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the
high priest, was son in law to Sanballat the Horonite :
therefore I chased him from me. Remember them, O
my God, because they have defiled the priesthood, and
the covenant of the priesthood, and of the Levites.
Thus cleansed I them from all strangers, and ap-
pointed the wards of the priests and the Levites, every
one in his business ; and for the wood offering, at times
appointed, and for the firstfniits. Remember me, O my
God, for good.
THE FIRST BOOK OF THE
MACCABEES
And it happened, after that Alexander son of Philip,
the Macedonian, who came out of the land of Chittim,
had smitten Darius king of the Persians and Medes,
that he reigned in his stead, in former time over Greece,
and made many wars, and won many strong holds, and
slew the kings of the earth, and went through to the
ends of the earth, and took spoils of many nations,
insomuch that the earth was quiet before him ; where-
upon he was exalted, and his heart was lifted up. And
he gathered a mighty strong host, and ruled over coun-
tries, and nations, and kings, who became tributaries
unto him.
And after these things he fell sick, and perceived that
he should die. Wherefore he called his servants, such
as were honourable, and had been brought up with
him from his youth, and parted his kingdom am.ong
them, while he was yet alive. So Alexander reigned
twelve years, and then died. And his servants bare
rule every one in his place. And after his death they all
put crowns upon themselves ; so did their sons after
them many years : and evils were multiplied in the
earth. And there came out of them a wicked root,
Antiochus surnamed Epiphanes, son of Antiochus the
king, who had been an hostage at Rome, and he reigned
in the hundred and thirty and seventh year of the king-
dom of the Greeks.
In those days went there out of Israel wicked men,
who persuaded many, saying : — " Let us go and make a
covenant with the heathen that are round about us : for
since we departed from them we have had much sor-
row." So this device pleased them well. Then certain
of the people were so forward herein, that they went
to the king, who gave them licence to do after the
ordinances of the heathen : whereupon they built a place
401
402 I. MACCABEES [i. 15-31
of exercise at Jerusalem according to the customs of
the heathen : and made themselves uncircumcised, and
forsook the holy covenant, and joined themselves to
the heathen, and were sold to do mischief.
Now when the kingdom was established before Antio-
chus, he thought to reign over Egypt, that he might
have the dominion of two realms. Wherefore he entered
into Egypt with a great multitude, with chariots, and
elephants, and horsemen, and a great navy, and made
war against Ptolemy king of Egypt: but Ptolemy was
afraid of him, and fled ; and many were wounded to
death. Thus they got the strong cities in the land of
Egypt, and he took the spoils thereof.
And after that Antiochus had smitten Egypt, he re-
turned again in the hundred forty and third year, and
went up against Israel and Jerusalem with a great multi-
tude, and entered proudly into the sanctuarv, and took
away the golden altar, and the candlestick o'f light, and
all the vessels thereof, and the table of the shewbread,
and the pouring vessels, and the vials, and the censers
of gold, and the veil, and the crowns, and the golden
ornaments that were before the temple, all which he
pulled off. He took also the silver and the gold, and
the precious vessels : also he took the hidden treasures
which he found. And when he had taken all away, he
went into his own land, having made a great massacre,
and spoken very proudly. Therefore there was great
mourning in Israel, in every place where they were ; so
that the princes and elders mourned, the virgins and
young men were made feeble, and the beautv of women
was changed. Every bridegroom took up lamentation,
and she that sat in the marriage chamber was in heaviness.
The land also was moved for the inhabitants thereof,
and all the house of Jacob was covered with confusion.
And, after two years fully expired, the king sent his
chief collector of tribute unto the cities of Judah, who
came unto Jerusalem with a great multitude, and spake
peaceable words unto them, but all was deceit : for when
they had given him credence, he fell suddenly upon the
city, and smote it very sore, and destroyed much people
of Israel. And when he had taken the spoils of the
city, he set it on fire, and pulled down the houses and
i- 32-51] I- MACCABEES 403
walls thereof on every side. But the women and chil-
dren took they captive, and possessed the cattle.
Then builded they the city of David with a great and
strong wall, and with mighty towers, and made it a
strong hold for them. And they put therein a sinful
nation, wicked men, and fortified themselves therem.
They stored it also with armour and victuals, and when
they had gathered together the spoils of Jerusalem, they
laid them up there, and so they became a sore snare : for
it was a place to lie in wait in against the sanctuary,
and an evil adversary to Israel. Thus they shed inno-
cent blood on every side of the sanctuary, and defiled it :
insomuch that the inhabitants of Jerusalem fled because
of them : whereupon the city was made an habitation
of strangers, and became strange to those that were
born in her ; and her own children left her. Her sanc-
tuary was laid waste like a wilderness, her feasts were
turned into mourning, her sabbaths into reproach, her
honour into contempt. As had been her glory, so was
her dishonour increased, and her excellency was turned
into mourning.
Moreover king Antiochus wTOte to his whole kingdom,
that all should be one people, and every one should
leave his laws : so all the heathen agreed according to
the commandment of the king. Yea, many also of the
Israelites consented to his religion, and sacrificed unto
idols, and profaned the sabbath. For the king had sent
letters by messengers unto Jerusalem and the cities of
Judah, that they should follow the strange laws of the
land, and forbid burnt offerings, and sacrifice, and
drink offerings, in the temple ; and that they should
profane the sabbaths and festival days : and pollute the
sanctuary and holy people : set up altars, and temples,
and chapels of idols, and sacrifice swine's flesh, and
unclean beasts : that they should also leave their children
uncircumcised, and make their souls abominable with
all manner of uncleanness and profanation : to the end
they might forget the law, and change all the ordinances.
And whosoever would not do according to the com-
mandment of the kino-, he said, he should die. In the
selfsame manner wrote he to his whole kingdom, and
appointed overseers over all the people, commanding
404 I. MACCABEES [I. 52— ii, 8
the cities of Judah to sacrifice, city by city. Then many
of the people were gathered unto them, to wit, every one
that forsook the law ; and so they committed evils in the
land; and drove the Israelites into secret places, even
wheresoever they could flee for succour.
Now the fifteenth day of the month Chislev, in the
hundred forty and fifth year, they set up the abomination
of desolation upon the altar, and builded idol altars
throughout the cities of Judah on every side ; and burnt
incense at the doors of their houses, and in the streets.
And when they had rent in pieces the books of the law
which they found, they burnt them with fire. And
wheresoever was found with any the book of the testa-
ment, or if any consented to the law, the king's com-
mandment was, that they should put him to death. Thus
did they by their authority unto the Israelites every
month, to as many as were found in the cities.
Now the five and twentieth day of the month thev
did sacrifice upon the idol altar, which was upon the
altar of God. At which time according to the command-
ment they put to death certain women, that had caused
their children to be circumcised. And they hanged the
infants about their necks, and rifled their houses, and
slew them that had circumcised them. Howbeit manv
in Israel were fully resolved and confirmed in themselves
not to eat any unclean thing. Wherefore they chose
rather to die, that they might not be defiled with meats,
and that they might not profane the holy covenant : so
then they died. And there was very great wrath upon
Israel.
In those days arose Mattathias the son of John, the
son of Simeon, a priest of the sons of Joarib, from Jeru-
salem, and dwelt in Modin. And he had five sons, John,
who was surnamed Gaddis : Simon, called Thassi :
Judas, who was called Maccabaeus : Eleazar, called
Avaran : and Jonathan, whose surname was Apphus.
And when he saw the blasphemies that were committed
in Judah and Jerusalem, he said : — " Woe is me ! where-
fore was I born to see this misery of my people, and of
the holy city, and to dwell there, when it was delivered
into the hand of the enemy, and the sanctuary into the
hand of strangers? Her temple is become as a man
ii. 9-25] I. iVIACCABKES 405
without glory. Her glorious vessels are carried away
into captivity, her infants are slain in the streets, her
young men with the sword of the enemy. What nation
hath not had a part in her kingdom, and gotten of her
spoils ? All her ornaments are taken away ; of a free
woman she is become a bondslave. And, behold, our
sanctuary, even our beauty and our glory, is laid waste,
and the Gentiles have profaned it. To what end there-
fore shall we live any longer?" Then Mattathias and
his sons rent their clothes, and put on sackcloth, and
mourned very sore.
In the mean while the king's ofHcers, such as com-
pelled the people to revolt, came into the city Modin,
to make them sacrifice. And when many of Israel came
unto them, Mattathias also and his sons came together.
Then answered the king's of^cers, and said to Mattathias
on this wise: — "Thou art a ruler, and an honourable
and great man in this city, and strengthened with sons
and brethren : now therefore come thou first, and fulfil
the king's commandment, like as all the heathen have
done, yea, and the men of Judah also, and such as
remain at Jerusalem : so shalt thou and thy house be in
the number of the king's friends, and thou and thy
children shall be honoured with silver and gold, and
many rewards." Then Mattathias answered and spake
with a loud voice : — " Though all the nations that are
under the king's dominion obey him, and fall away
every one from the religion of their fathers, and give
consent to his commandments : yet will I and my sons
and my brethren walk in the covenant of our fathers.
God forbid that we should forsake the law and the
ordinances. We will not hearken to the king's words,
to go from our religion, either on the right hand or
the'left. "
Now when he had left speaking these words, there
came one of the Jews in the sight of all to sacrifice on
the altar which was at Modin, according to the king's
commandment. Which thing when Mattathias saw, he
was inflamed with zeal, and his reins trembled, neither
could he forbear to shew his anger according to judg-
ment : wherefore he ran, and slew him upon the altar.
Also the king's commissioner, who compelled men tc
4o6 I. MACCABEES [ii. 26-41
sacrifice, he killed at that time, and the ahar he pulled
down. Thus dealt he zealously for the law of God, like
as Phinehas did unto Zimri the son of Salu. And Matta-
thias cried throughout the city with a loud voice, say-
ing : — "Whosoever is zealous of the law, and main-
taineth the covenant, let him follow me." So he and
his sons fled into the mountains, and left all that ever
they had in the city.
Then many that sought after justice and judgment
went down into the wilderness, to dwell there : both
they, and their children, and their wives, and their
cattle ; because afflictions increased sore upon them.
Now when it was told the king's servants, and the host
that was at Jerusalem, in the city of David, that certain
men, who had broken the king's commandment, were
gone down into the secret places in the wilderness, they
pursued after them a great number, and having over-
taken them, they camped against them, and made war
against them on the sabbath day. And they said unto
them : — " Let that which ye have done hitherto suffice;
come forth, and do according to the commandment of
the king, and ye shall live." But they said: — "We
will not come forth, neither will we do the king's com-
mandment, to profane the sabbath day." So then they
gave them the battle with all speed. Howbeit they
answered them not, neither cast they a stone at them,
nor stopped the places where they lay hid; but said : —
" Let us die all in our innocency : heaven and earth shall
testify for us, that ye put us to death wrongfully." So
they rose up against them in battle on the sabbath, and
they slew them, with their wives and children, and their
cattle, to the number of a thousand people.
Now when Mattathias and his friends understood
hereof, they mourned for them right sore. And one of
them said to another: — " If we all do as our brethren
have done, and fight not for our lives and laws against
the heathen, they will now quickly root us out of the
earth." At that time therefore they decreed, saying : —
" Whosoever shall come to make battle with us on the
sabbath day, we will fight against him ; neither will we
die all, as our brethren that were murdered in the secret
places."
ii. 42-64] I. MACCABEES 407
Then came there unto him a company of Hassidaeans,
who were mighty men of Israel, even all such as were
voluntarily devoted unto the law. Also all they that
fled for persecution joined themselves unto them, and
were a stay unto them. So they joined their forces, and
smote sinful men in their anger, and wicked men in
their wrath : but the rest fled to the heathen for succour.
Then Mattathias and his friends went round about,
and pulled down the altars : and what children soever
they found within the coast of Israel uncircumcised,
those they circumcised valiantly. They pursued also
after the proud men, and the work prospered in their
hand. So they recovered the law out of the hand of
the Gentiles, and out of the hand of kings, neither suf-
fered they the sinner to triumph.
Now when the time drew near that Mattathias should
die, he said unto his sons : — " Now hath pride and re-
buke gotten strength, and the time of destruction, and
the wrath of indignation : now therefore, my sons, be ye
zealous for the law, and give your lives for the covenant
of your fathers. Call to remembrance what acts our
fathers did in their time ; so shall ye receive great honour
and an everlasting name. Was not Abraham found
faithful in temptation, and it was imputed unto him for
righteousness? Joseph in the time of his distress kept
the commandment, and was made lord of Egypt. Phine-
has our father in being zealous and fervent obtained the
covenant of an everlasting priesthood. Joshua for ful-
filling the word was made a judge in Israel. Caleb
for bearing witness before the congregation received the
heritage of the land. David for being merciful pos-
sessed the throne of an everlasting kingdom. Elijah
for being zealous and fervent for the law was taken up
into heaven. Hananiah, Azariah, and Mishael, by be-
lieving were saved out of the flame. Daniel for his
innocency was delivered from the mouth of lions. And
thus consider ye throughout all ages, that none that put
their trust in Him shall be overcome. Fear not then the
words of a sinful man : for his glory shall be dung and
worms. To-day he shall be lifted up, and to-morrow
he shall not be found, because he is returned into his
dust, and his thought is come to nothing. Wherefore,
4dS I. MACCABEES [ii. 65— iii. 13
ye my sons, be valiant, and shevv yourselves men in tl:e
behalf of the law ; for by it shall ye obtain glory. And,
behold, I know that your brother Simon is a man of
counsel, give ear unto him alway : he shall be a father
unto you. As for Judas Maccabaeus, he hath been
mighty and strong, even from his youth up : let him be
your captain, and fight the battle of the people. Take
also unto you all those that observe the law, and avenge
ye the wrong of your people. Recompense fully the
heathen, and take heed to the commandments of the
law. ' '
So he blessed them, and was gathered to his fathers.
And he died in the hundred forty and sixth year, and his
sons buried him in the sepulchres of his fathers at
Modin, and all Israel made great lamentation for him.
Then his son Judas, called Maccabaeus, rose up in
his stead. And all his brethren helped him, and so did
all they that held with his father, and they fought with
cheerfulness the battle of Israel. So he gat his people
great honour, and put on a breastplate as a giant, and
girt his v.'arlike harness about him, and he made battles,
protecting the host with his sword. In his acts he was
like a lion, and like a lion's whelp roaring for his prey.
For he pursued the wicked, and sought them out, and
burnt up those that vexed his people. \Mierefore the
wicked shrunk for fear of him, and all the workers of
iniquity were troubled, because salvation prospered in
his hand. He grieved also many kings, and made
Jacob glad with his acts, and his memorial is blessed
for ever. Moreover he went through the cities of Judah,
destroying the ungodly out of them, and turning away
wrath from Israel : so that he was renowned unto the
utniost part of the earth, and he received unto him such
as were ready to perish.
Then Apollonius gathered the Gentiles together, and
a great host out of Samaria, to fight against Israel.
Which thing when Judas perceived, he went forth to
meet him, and so he smote him, and slew him : manv
also fell down slain, but the rest fled. Wherefore Judas
took their spoils, and Apollonius' sword also, and there-
with he fought all his life long.
Now when Seron, the commander of the armv of
iii. 14-29] I. MACCABEES 409
Syria, heard say that Judas had gathered unto him a
multitude and company of the faithful to go out with
him to war; he said: — " I will get me a name and
honour in the kingdom ; for I will go fight with Judas
and them that are with him, who despise the king's
commandment." So he made him ready to go up, and
there went with him a mighty host of the ungodly to
help him, and to be avenged of the children of Israel.
And when he came near to the going up of Bethhoron,
Judas went forth to meet him with a small company :
who, when they saw the host coming to meet them, said
unto Judas : — " How shall we be able, being so few, to
fight against so great a multitude and so strong, seeing
we are ready to faint with fasting all this day?" Unto
whom Judas answered: — "It is no hard matter for
many to be shut up in the hands of a few ; and with the
God of heaven it is all one, to deliver with a great multi-
tude, or a small company : for the victory of battle
standeth not in the multitude of an host ; but strength
cometh from heaven. They come against us in much
pride and iniquity to destroy us, and our wives and chil-
dren, and to spoil us : but we fight for our lives and our
laws. Wherefore the Lord Himself will overthrow
them before our face : and as for you, be ye not afraid
of them." Now as soon as he had left off speaking, he
leapt suddenly upon them, and so Seron and his host
was overthrown before him. And they pursued them
from the going down of Bethhoron unto the plain, where
were slain about eight hundred men of them ; and the
residue fled into the land of the Philistines. Then began
the fear of Judas and his brethren, and an exceeding
great dread, to fall upon the nations round about them :
insomuch as his fame came unto the king, and all
nations talked of the battles of Judas.
Now when king Antiochus heard these things, he was
full of indignation : wherefore he sent and gathered to-
gether all the forces of his realm, even a very strong
army. He opened also his treasure, and gave his soldiers
pay for a year, commanding them to be ready whenso-
ever he should need them. Nevertheless, when he saw
that the money of his treasures failed, and that the
tributes in the country were small, because of the dis-
410 I. MACCABEES [iii. 30-43
sension and plague, which he had brought upon the
land in taking away the laws which had been of old
time, he feared that he should not be able to bear the
charges any longer, nor to have such gifts to give so
liberally as he did before : for he had abounded above
the kings that were before him. Wherefore, being
greatly perplexed in his mind, he determined to go into
Persia, there to take the tributes of the countries, and
to gatiier much money. So he left Lysias, a nobleman,
and one of the blood royal, to oversee the affairs of the
king from the river Euphrates unto the borders of
Egypt : and to bring up his son Antiochus, until he
canie again. iMoreover he delivered unto him the half
of his forces, and the elephants, and gave him charge
of all things that he would have done, as also concerning
them that dwelt in Judah and Jerusalem : to wit, that
he should send an army against them, to destroy and
root out the strength of Israel, and the remnant of
Jerusalem, and to take away their memorial from that
place ; and that he should place strangers in all their
quarters, and divide their land by lot. So the king took
the half of the forces that remained, and departed from
Antioch, his royal city, the hundred forty and seventh
year ; and having passed the river Euphrates, he went
through the high countries.
Then Lysias chose Ptolemy the son of Dorymenes,
and Nicanor, and Gorgias, mighty men of the king's
friends : and with them he sent forty thousand footmen,
and seven thousand horsemen, to go into the land of
Judah, and to destroy it, as the king commanded. So
they went forth with all their power, and came and
pitched by Emmaus in the plain country. And the mer-
chants of the country, hearing the fame of them, took
silver and gold very much, with servants, and came into
the camp to buy the children of Israel for slaves : the
forces also of Syria and of the land of the Philistines
joined themselves unto them.
Now when Judas and his brethren saw that miseries
were multiplied, and that the forces did encamp them-
selves in their borders ; for they knew how the king had
given commandment to destroy the people, and utterlv
abolish them, they said one to another: — "Let us
iii. 44-59] I. MACCABEES 411
restore the decayed estate of our people, and let us fight
for our people and the sanctuary." Then was the con-
gregation gathered together, that they might be ready
for battle, and that they might pray, and ask mercy
and compassion.
Now Jerusalem lay void as a wilderness, there was
none of her children that went in or out : the sanctuary
also was trodden down, and aliens kept the strong hold ;
the heathen had their habitation in that place ; and joy
was taken from Jacob, and the pipe with the harp ceased.
Wherefore the Israelites assembled themselves together,
and came to Mizpeh, over against Jerusalem ; for in
Mizpeh was the place where they prayed aforetime in
Israel. Then they fasted that day, and put on sackcloth,
and cast ashes upon their heads, and rent their clothes,
and laid open the book of the law, wherein the heathen
had sought to paint the likeness of their images. They
brought also the priests' garments, and the firstfruits,
and the tithes : and the Nazarites they stirred up, who
had accomplished their days. Then cried they with a
loud voice toward heaven, saying: — "What shall we
do with these, and whither shall we carry them away?
For Thy sanctuary is trodden down and profaned, and
Thy priests are in heaviness, and brought low. And, lo,
the heathen are assembled together against us to destroy
us : what things they imagine against us, Thou knowest.
How shall we be able to stand against them, except
Thou, O God, be our help?" Then sounded they with
trumpets, and cried with a loud voice.
And after this Judas ordained captains over the people,
even captains over thousands, and over hundreds, and
over fifties, and over tens. But as for such as were
building houses, or had betrothed wives, or were plant-
ing vineyards, or were fearful, those he commanded that
tliey should return, every man to his own house, accord-
ing to the law. So the camp removed, and pitched upon
the south side of Emmaus. And Judas said: — "Arm
vourselves, and be valiant men, and see that ye be in
readiness against the morning, that ye may fight with
these nations, that are assembled together against us to
destroy us and our sanctuary : for it is better for us to
die in battle, than to behold the calamities of our people
412 I. MACCABEES [iii. 60— iv. 18
and our sanctuary. Nevertheless, as the will of God Is
in heaven, so let Him do."
Then took Gorgias five thousand footmen, and a thou-
sand of the best horsemen, and removed out of the camp
by night ; to the end he might rush in upon the camp of
the Jews, and smite them suddenly. And the men of the
fortress were his guides. Now when Judas heard there-
of, he himself removed, and the valiant men with him,
that he might smite the king's army which was at
Emmaus, while as yet the forces were dispersed from
the camp.
And Gorgias came by night into the camp of Judas :
and when he found no man there, he sought them in the
mountains : for said he : — " These fellows flee from us. "
But as soon as it was day, Judas shewed himself in the
plain with three thousand men, who nevertheless had
neither armour nor swords to their minds. And they
saw the camp of the heathen, that it was strong and
well harnessed, and compassed round about with horse-
men ; and these were expert of war. Then said Judas to
the men that were with him : — " Fear ye not their multi-
tude, neither be ye afraid of their assault. Remember
how our fathers were delivered in the Red Sea, when
Pharaoh pursued them with an army. Now therefore
let us cry unto heaven, if peradventure the Lord will
have mercy upon us, and remember the covenant of our
fathers, and destroy this host before our face this day :
that so all the heathen may know that there is One who
delivereth and saveth Israel." Then the strangers
lifted up their eyes, and saw them coming over against
them. Wherefore they went out of the camp to battle ;
but they that were with Judas sounded their trumpets.
So they joined battle, and the heathen being discomfited
fled into the plain. Howbeit all the hindmost of them
were slain with the sword : for they pursued them unto
Gazara, and unto the plains of Idumaea, and Azotus,
and Jamnia, so that there were slain of them upon a
three thousand men.
This done, Judas returned again with his host from
pursuing them, and said to the people : — " Be not greedy
of the spoils, inasmuch as there is a battle before us,
and Gorgias and his host are here by us in the moun-
iv. 19-35] I. MACCABEES 413
tain : but stand ye now against our enemies, and over-
come them, and after this ye may boldly take the spoils. "
As Judas was yet speaking these words, there appeared
a part of them looking out of the mountain : who when
they perceived that the Jews had put their host to
flight, and were burning the tents — for the smoke that
was seen declared what was done — when therefore they
perceived these things, they were sore afraid, and seeing
also the host of Judas in the plain ready to fight, they
fled every one into the land of strangers. Then Judas
returned to spoil the tents, where they got much gold,
and silver, and blue silk, and purple of the sea, and great
riches. After this they went home, and sung a song of
thanksgiving, and praised the Lord in heaven : — " Be-
cause it is good, because His mercy endureth for ever."
Thus Israel had a great deliverance that day.
Now all the strangers that had escaped came and told
Lysias what had happened : who, when he heard thereof,
vvas confounded and discouraged, because neither such
things as he would were done unto Israel, nor such
things as the king commanded him were come to pass.
The next year therefore following Lysias gathered to-
gether threescore thousand choice men of foot, and five
thousand horsemen, that he might subdue them. So
they came into Idumsea, and pitched their tents at Beth-
sura, and Judas met them with ten thousand men. And
when he saw that mighty army, he prayed and said : —
" Blessed art Thou, O Saviour of Israel, who didst
quell the violence of the mighty man by the hand of
Thy servant David, and gavest the host of strangers into
the hands of Jonathan the son of Saul, and his armour-
bearer ; shut up this army in the hand of Thy people
Israel, and let them be confounded in their power and
horsemen : make them to be of no courage, and cause
the boldness of their strength to fall away, and let them
quake at their destruction : cast them down with the
sword of them that love Thee, and let all those that
know Thy name praise Thee with thanksgiving." So
they joined battle ; and there were slain of the host of
Lysias about five thousand men, even before them were
they slain.
Now when Lysias saw his army put to flight, and the
414- I. MACCABEES [iv. 36-52
manliness of Judas' soldiers, and how they were ready
either to live or die valiantly, he went into Antioch, and
gathered together hired soldiers, and having made
his army greater than it was, he purposed to come
again into Judaea. Then said Judas and his brethren : —
" Behold, our enemies are discomfited : let us go up to
cleanse and dedicate the sanctuary." Upon this all the
host assembled themselves together, and went up into
mount Sion. And when they saw the sanctuary deso-
late, and the altar profaned, and the gates burned up,
and shrubs growing in the courts as in a forest, or in
one of the mountains, yea, and the priests' chambers
pulled down, they rent their clothes, and made great
lamentation, and cast ashes upon their heads, and fell
down flat to the ground upon their faces, and blew an
alarm with the trumpets, and cried toward heaven.
Then Judas appointed certain men to fight aginst those
that were in the fortress, until he had cleansed the sanc-
tuary. So he chose priests of blameless conversation,
such as had pleasure in the law : who cleansed the
sanctuary, and bare out the defiled stones into an unclean
place. And when as they consulted what to do with the
altar of burnt offerings, which was profaned, they
thought it best to pull it down, lest it should be a re-
proach to them, because the heathen had defiled it :
wherefore they pulled it down, and laid up the stones in
the mountain of the temple in a convenient place, until
there should come a prophet to shew what should be
done with them. Then they took whole stones according
to the law, and built a new altar according to the former ;
and made up the sanctuary, and the things that were
within the temple, and hallowed the courts. They made
also new holy vessels, and into the temple they brought
the candlestick, and the altar of burnt offerings, and of
incense, and the table. And upon the altar they burned
incense, and the lamps that were upon the candlestick
they lighted, that they might give light in the temple.
Furthermore they set the loaves upon the table, and
spread out the veils, and finished all the works which
they had begun to make.
Now on the five and twentieth day of the ninth month,
which is called the month Chislev, in the hundred fortv
iv. 53_v. 6] I. MACCABEES 415
and eighth year, they rose up betimes in the morning,
and offered sacrifice according to the law upon the new-
altar of burnt offerings, which they had made. Look,
at what time and what day the heathen had profaned it,
even in that was it dedicated with songs, and harps, and
lutes, and cymbals. Then all the people fell upon their
faces, worshipping and praising the God of heaven, who
had given them good success. And so they kept the
dedication of the altar eight days, and offered burnt
offerings with gladness, and sacrificed the sacrifice of
deliverance and praise. They decked also the forefront
of the temple with crowns of gold, and with shields ; and
the gates and the chambers they renewed, and hanged
doors upon them. Thus was there very great gladness
among the people, for that the reproach of the heathen
was put away. Moreover Judas and his brethren with
the whole congregation of Israel ordained, that the days
of the dedication of the altar should be kept in their
season from year to year by the space of eight days, from
the five and twentieth day of the month Chislev, with
mirth and gladness. At that time also they builded up
the mount Sion with high walls and strong towers round
about, lest the Gentiles should come and tread it down,
as they had done before. And they set there' a garrison
to keep it, and fortified Bethsura to preserve it ; that the
people might have a defence against Idumaea.
Now when the nations round about heard that the
altar was built, and the sanctuary renewed as before, it
displeased them very much. Wherefore they thought
to destroy the generation of Jacob that was among them,
and thereupon they began to slay and destroy the people.
Then Judas fought against the children of Esau in Idu-
maea at Akrabattine, because they besieged Israel : and
he gave them a great overthrow, and abated their
courage, and took their spoils. Also he remembered the
iniury of the children of Baean, who had been a snare and
an offence unto the people, in that they lay in wait for
them in the ways. He shut them up therefore in the
towers, and encamped against them, and destroyed them
utterly, and burned the towers of that place with fire,
and all that were therein. Afterwards he passed over to
the children of Ammon, where he found a mighty band,
4i6 I. MACCABEES [v. 7-22
and much people, with Timotheus their captain. So he
fought many battles with them, till at length they were
discomfited before him ; and he smote them. And when
he had taken Jazer, with the towns belonging thereto,
he returned into Judaea.
Then the heathen that were at Gilead assembled them-
selves together against the Israelites that were in their
quarters, to destroy them; but they fled to the fortress
of Dathema, and sent letters unto Judas and his
brethren : — " The heathen that are round about us are
assembled together against us to destroy us : and they
are preparing to come and take the fortress whereunto
we are fled, Timotheus being captain of their host. Come
now therefore, and deliver us from their hands, for
many of us are slain : yea, all our brethren that were in
the places of Tubias are put to death : their wives and
their children also they have carried away captives, and
borne away their stuff ; and they have destroyed there
about a thousand men." While these letters were yet
reading, behold, there came other messengers from
Galilee with their clothes rent, who reported on this
wise, and said : — " They of Ptolemais, and of Tyre, and
Sidon, and all Galilee of the Gentiles, are assembled
together against us to consume us."
Now when Judas and the people heard these words,
there assembled a great congregation together, to con-
sult what they should do for their brethren, that were in
trouble, and assaulted of them. Then said Judas unto
Simon his brother: — "Choose thee out men, and go
and deliver thy brethren that are in Galilee, for I and
Jonathan my brother will go into the country of Gilead. "
So he left Joseph the son of Zacharias, and Azarias,
captains of the people, with the remnant of the host in
Judaea to keep it. Unto whom he gave commandment,
saying : — " Take ye charge of this people, and see that
ye make not war against the heathen until the time that
we come again." Now unto Simon were given three
thousand men to go into Galilee, and unto Judas eight
thousand men for the country of Gilead. Then Avent
Simon into Galilee, where he fought many battles with
the heathen, so that the heathen were discomfited by
him. And he pursued them unto the gate of Ptolemais ;
V. 23-38] I. MACCABEES 417
and there were slain of the heathen about three thou-
sand men, whose spoils he took. And those that were
in Galilee, and in Arbatta, with their wives and their
children, and all that they had, took he away with him,
and brought them into Judaea with great joy. Judas
Maccabaeus also and his brother Jonathan went over
Jordan, and travelled three days' journey in the wilder-
ness, where they met with the Nabathaeans, who came
unto them in a peaceable manner, and told them every
thing that had happened to their brethren in the land of
Gilead : and how that many of them were shut up in
Bosora, and Bosor, and Alema, Casphor, Maked, and
Carnaim ; all these cities are strong and great : and
that they were shut up in the rest of the cities of the
country of Gilead, and that against to-morrow they had
appointed to bring their host against the forts, and to
take them, and to destroy them all in one day.
Hereupon Judas and his host turned suddenly by the
wav of the wilderness unto Bosora ; and when he had
won the city, he slew all the m,ales with the edge of the
sword, and took all their spoils, and burned the city with
fire. From whence he removed by night, and went till
he came to the fortress. And betimes in the morning
they looked up, and, behold, there was an innumerable
people bearing ladders and other engines of war, to take
the fortress : for they assaulted them. When Judas
therefore saw that the battle was begun, and that the
cry of the city went up to heaven, with trumpets, and a
great sound, he said unto his host : — " Fight this day
for your brethren." So he went forth behind them in
three companies, who sounded their trumpets, and cried
with prayer. Then the host of Timotheus, knowing that
it was Maccabaeus, fled from him : wherefore he smote
them with a great slaughter ; so that there were killed of
them that day about eight thousand men. This done,
Judas turned aside to Maspha ; and after he had
assaulted it, he took it, and slew all the males therein,
and received the spoils thereof, and burnt it with fire.
From thence went he, and took Casphon, Maked, Bosor,
I and the other cities of the country of Gilead.
After these things gathered Timotheus another host,
and encamped against Raphon beyond the brook. So
VOL. II. p
41 8 I. MACCABEES [v. 39-51
Judas sent men to espy the host, who brought him word,
saying : — " All the heathen that be round about us are
assembled unto them, even a very great host. He hath
also hired the Arabians to help them, and they have
pitched their tents beyond the brook, ready to come and
fight against thee." Upon this Judas went to meet
them. Then Timotheus said unto the captains of his
host : — " When Judas and his host come near the brook,
if he pass over first unto us, we shall not be able to
withstand him ; for he will mightily prevail against us :
but if he be afraid, and camp beyond the river, we shall
go over unto him, and prevail against him. " Now when
Judas came near the brook, he caused the scribes of the
people to remain by the brook : unto whom he gave com-
mandment, saying : — " Suffer no man to remain in the
camp, but let all come to the battle." So he went first
over unto them, and all the people after him : then all
the heathen, being discomfited before him, cast away
their weapons, and fled unto the temple that was at
Carnaim. But they took the city, and burned the temple
with all that were therein. Thus was Carnaim subdued,
neither could they stand any longer before Judas.
Then Judas gathered together all the Israelites that
were in the country of Gilead, from the least unto the
greatest, even their wives, and their children, and their
stuff, a very great host, to the end they might come into
the land of Judaea. Now when they came unto Ephron,
(this was a great city in the way as they should go, very
well fortified) they could not turn from it, either on the
right hand or the left, but must needs pass through the
midst of it. Then they of the city shut them out, and
stopped up the gates with stones. Whereupon Judas
sent unto them in peaceable manner, saying : — " Let us
pass through your land to go into our own country, and
none shall do you any hurt ; we will only pass through
on foot:" howbeit they would not open unto him.
Wherefore Judas commanded a proclamation to be made
throughout the host, that every man should pitch his tent
in the place where he was. So the soldiers pitched, and
assaulted the city all that day and all that night, till at
length the city was delivered into his hands ; who then
slew all the males with the edge of the sword, and rased
V. 52-68] I. MACCABEES 419
the city, and took the spoils thereof, and passed through
the city over them that were slain. After this went they
over Jordan into the great plain before Bethshan. And
Judas gathered together those that came behind, and
exhorted the people all the way through, till they came
into the land of Judaea. So they went up to mount Sion
with joy and gladness, where they offered burnt offer-
ings, because not one of them were slain until they had
returned in peace.
Now what time as Judas and Jonathan were in the
land of Gilead, and Simon his brother in Galilee before
Ptolem.ais, Joseph the son of Zacharias, and Azarias,
captains of the garrisons, heard of the valiant acts and
warlike deeds which they had done. Wherefore they
said : — " Let us also get us a name, and go fight against
the heathen that are round about us." So when they
had given charge unto the garrison that was with them,
they went toward Jamnia. Then came Gorgias and his
men out of the city to fight against them. And so it was,
that Joseph and Azarias were put to flight, and pursued
unto the borders of Judaea : and there were slain that
day of the people of Israel about two thousand men.
Thus was there a great overthrow among the children of
Israel, because they were not obedient unto Judas and
his brethren, but thought to do some valiant act. More-
over these men came not of the seed of those, by whose
hand deliverance was given unto Israel. Howbeit the
man Judas and his brethren were greatly renowned in
the sight of all Israel, and of all the heathen, whereso-
ever their name was heard of ; insomuch as the people
assembled unto them with joyful acclamations.
Afterward went Judas forth with his brethren, and
fought against the children of Esau in the land toward
the south, where he smote Hebron, and the towns
thereof, and pulled down ±he fortress of it, and burned
the towers thereof round about. From thence he re-
moved to go into the land of the Philistines, and passed
through Samaria. At that time certain priests, desirous
to shew their valour, were slain in battle, for that they
went out to fight unadvisedly. So Judas turned to Azo-
tus in the land of the Philistines, and when he had pulled
down their altars, and burned their carved images with
420 I. MACCABEES [vi. 1-14
fire, and spoiled their cities, he returned into the land of
Judaea.
About that time king Antiochus traveUing through the
high countries heard say, that Elymais in the country
of Persia was a city greatly renowned for riches, silver,
and gold ; and that there was in it a very rich temple,
wherein were coverings of gold, and breastplates, and
shields, which Alexander, son of Philip, the Macedonian
king, who reigned first among the Grecians, had left
there. Wherefore he came and sought to take the city,
and to spoil it ; but he was not able, because they of the
city, having had warning thereof, rose up against him
in battle : so he fled, and departed thence with great
heaviness, and returned to Babylon. Moreover there
came one who brought him tidings into Persia, that the
armies, which went against the land of Judaea, were put
to flight : and that Lysias, who went forth first with a
great power, was driven away of the Jews ; and that
they were made strong by the armour, and power, and
store of spoils, which they had gotten of the armies,
whom they had destroyed : also that they had pulled
down the abomination, which he had set up upon the
altar in Jerusalem, and that they had compassed about
the sanctuary with high walls, as before, and his city
Bethsura. Now when the king heard these words, he
was astonished and sore moved : whereupon he laid him
down upon his bed, and fell sick for grief, because it had
not befallen him as he looked for. And there he con-
tinued many days : for his grief was ever more and
more, and he made account that he should die. Where-
fore he called for all his friends, and said unto them : —
" The sleep is gone from mine eyes, and my heart faileth
for very care. And I thought with myself, Into what
tribulation am I come, and how great a flood of miserv
is it, wherein now I am ! for I was bountiful and beloved
in my power. But now I remember the evils that I did
at Jerusalem, and that I took all the vessels of gold and
silver that were therein, and sent to destroy the inhabit-
ants of Judasa without a cause. I perceive therefore that
for this cause these troubles are come upon me, and,
behold, I perish through great grief in a strange land."
Then called he for Philip, one of his friends, whom he
vi. 15-31] I. MACCABEES 421
made ruler over all his realm, and gave him the crown,
and his robe, and his signet, to the end he should bring
up his son Antiochus, and nourish him up for the king-
dom. So king Antiochus died there in the hundred forty
and ninth year. Now when Lysias knew that the king
was dead, he set up Antiochus his son, whom he had
brought up being young, to reign in his stead, and his
name he called Eupator.
About this time they that were in the citadel shut up
the Israelites round about the sanctuary, and sought
always their hurt, and the strengthening of the heathen.
Wherefore Judas, purposing to destroy them, called all
the people together to besiege them. So they came
together, and besieged them in the hundred and fiftieth
year, and he made mounts for shot against them, and
other engines. Howbeit certain of them that were be-
sieged got forth, unto whom some ungodly men of Israel
joined themselves : and they went unto the king, and
said : — " How long will it be ere thou execute judgment,
and avenge our brethren? We have been willing to
serve thy father, and to do as he would have us, and to
obey his commandments ; for which cause they of our
nation besiege the citadel, and are alienated from us :
moreover as many of us as they could light on they slew,
and spoiled our inheritance. Neither have they stretched
out their hand against us only, but also against all their
borders. And, behold, this day are they besieging the
citadel at Jerusalem, to take it : the sanctuary also and
Bethsura have they fortified. Wherefore if thou dost
not prevent them quickly, they will do greater things
than these, neither shalt thou be able to rule them."
Now when the king heard this, he was angry, and
gathered together all his friends, and the captains of
his army, and those that had charge of the horse. There
came also unto him from other kingdoms, and from
isles of the sea, bands of hired soldiers. So that the
number of his army was an hundred thousand footmen,
and twenty thousand horsemen, and two and thirty
elephants exercised in battle. These went through
Idumjea, and pitched against Bethsura, which they
assaulted many days, making engines of war ; but they
of Bethsura came out, and burned them with fire, and
422 L MACCABEES [vi. 32-46
fought valiantly. Upon this Judas removed from the
tower, and pitched in Bethzacharias, over against the
king's camp. Then the king rising very early marched
fiercely with his host toward Bethzacharias, where his
armies made them ready to battle, and sounded the
trumpets. And to the end they might provoke the ele-
phants to fight, they showed them the blood of grapes
and mulberries. Moreover they divided the beasts
among the armies, and for every elephant they appointed
a thousand men, armed with coats of mail, and with
helmets of brass on their heads ; and beside this, for
every beast were ordained five hundred horsemen of the
best. These were ready at every occasion : wheresoever
the beast was, and whithersoever the beast went, they
went also, neither departed they from him. And upon
the beasts were there strong towers of wood, which
covered every one of them, and were girt fast unto them
with devices : there were also upon every one two and
thirty strong men, that fought upon them, beside the
Indian that ruled him. As for the remnant of the horse-
men, they set them on this side and that side at the two
parts of the host, giving them signs what to do, and
being harnessed all over amidst the ranks. Now when
the sun shone upon the shields of gold and brass, the
mountains glistered therewith, and shined like lamps of
fire. So part of the king's army being spread upon the
high mountains, and part on the valleys below, they
marched on safely and in order. Wherefore all that
heard the noise of their multitude, and the marching of
the company, and the rattling of the arms, were moved :
for the army was very great and mighty.
Then Judas and his host drew near, and entered into
battle, and there were slain of the king's army six hun-
dred men. Eleazar also, surnamed Avaran, perceiving
that one of the beasts, armed with royal harness, was
higher than all the rest, and supposing that the king
was upon him, put himself in jeopardy, to the end he
might deliver his people, and get him a perpetual name :
wherefore he ran upon him courageously through the
midst of the battle, slaying on the right hand and on
the left, so that they were divided from him on both
sides. Which done, he crept under the elephant, and
vi. 47-62] I. MACCABEES 423
thrust him under, and slew him : whereupon the elephant
fell down upon him, and there he died. Howbeit the rest
of the Jews seeing the strength of the king, and the
violence of his forces, turned away from them.
Then the king's army went up to Jerusalem to meet
them, and the king pitched his tents against Judaea, and
against mount Sion. But with them that were in Beth-
sura he made peace : for they came out of the city, be-
cause they had no victuals there to endure the siege, it
being a year of rest to the land. So the king took Beth-
sura, and set a garrison there to keep it. As for the
sanctuary, he besieged it many days : and set there
artillery with engines and instruments to cast fire and
stones, and pieces to cast darts and slings. Whereupon
they also made engines against their engines, and held
them battle a long season. Yet at the last, their vessels
being without victuals, (for that it was the seventh year,
and they in Judaea, that were delivered from the Gentiles,
had eaten up the residue of the store ;) there were but a
few left in the sanctuary, because the famine did so
prevail against them, that they were fain to disperse
themselves, every man to his own place.
At that time Lysias heard say, that Philip, whom
Antiochus the king, whiles he lived, had appointed to
bring up his son Antiochus, that he might be king, was
returned out of Persia and Media, and the king's host
also that went with him, and that he sought to take unto
him the ruling of the affairs. Wherefore he went in all
haste, and said to the king and the captains of the host
and the company : — " ^Ve decay daily, and our victuals
are but small, and the place we lay siege unto is strong,
and the affairs of the kingdom lie upon us : now there-
fore let us be friends with these men, and make peace
with them, and with all their nation ; and covenant with
them, that they shall live after their laws, as they did
before : for they are therefore displeased, and have done
all these things, because we abolished their laws." So
the king and the princes were content : wherefore he sent
unto them to make peace ; and they accepted thereof.
Also the king and the princes made an oath unto them :
whereupon they went out of the strong hold. Then the
king entered into mount Sion ; but when he saw the
424 I. MACCABEES [vi. 63— vii. 16
strength of the place, he brake his oath that he had
made, and gave commandment to pull down the wall
round about. Afterward departed he in all haste, and
returned unto Antioch, where he found Philip to be
master of the city : so he fought against him, and took
the city by force.
In the hundred and one and fiftieth year Demetrius the
son of Seleucus departed from Rome, and came up with
a few men unto a city of the sea coast, and reigned
there. And as he entered into the palace of his ances-
tors, so it was, that his forces had taken Antiochus and
Lvsias, to bring them unto him. Wherefore, when he
knew it, he said: — " Let me not see their faces." So
his host slew them. Now when Demetrius was set upon
the throne of his kingdom, there came unto him all the
wicked and ungodly men of Israel, having Alcimus, who
was desirous to be high priest, for their captain : and
they accused the people to the king, saying : — " Judas
and his brethren have slain all thy friends, and driven
us out of our own land. Now therefore send some man
whom thou trustest, and let him go and see what havoc
he hath made among us, and in the king's land, and let
him punish them with all them that aid them." Then
the king chose Bacchides, a friend of the king, who
ruled beyond the flood, and was a great man in the king-
dom, and faithful to the king. And him he sent with
that wicked Alcimus, whom he made high priest, and
commanded that he should take vengeance of the chil-
dren of Israel. So they departed, and came with a
great host into the land of Judaea, where they sent
messengers to Judas and his brethren with peaceable
words deceitfully. But they gave no heed to their
words ; for they saw that they were come with a great
host. Then did there assemble unto Alcimus and
Bacchides a company of scribes, to require justice. Now
the Hasidseans were the first among the children of
Israel that sought peace of them : for said they : — " One
that is a priest of the seed of Aaron is come with this
army, and he will do us no wrong." So he spake unto
them peaceably, and sware unto them, saying : — " Wg
will procure the harm neither of you nor your friends."
\M'iereupon they believed him : howbeit he took of them
vii. 17-32] I. MACCABEES 4^5
threescore men, and slew them in one day, according
to the words which he wrote :— " The flesh of Thy saints
have they cast out, and their blood have they shed round
about jeVusalem, and there was none to bury them."
Wherefore the fear and dread of them fell upon all the
people, who said :— " There is neither truth nor right-
eousness in them; for they have broken the covenant
and oath that they made."
After this removed Bacchides from Jerusalem, and
pitched his tents in Bezeth, where he sent and took many
of the men that had forsaken him, and certain of the
people also, and when he had slain them, he cast them
into the great pit. Then committed he the country to
Alcimus, and left with him a power to aid him : so
Bacchides went to the king. But Alcim.us contended
for the high priesthood. And unto him resorted all such
as troubled the people, who, after they had gotten the
land of Judah into their power, did much hurt in Israel.
Now when Judas saw all the mischief that Alcimus
and his company had done among the Israelites, even
above the heathen, he went out into all the coasts of
Judjea round about, and took vengeance of them that
had revolted from him, so that they durst no more go
forth into the country. On the other side, when Alcimus
saw that Judas and his company had gotten the upper
hand, and knew that he was not able to abide their
force, he went again to the king, and said all the worst
of them that he could. Then the king sent Nicanor, one
of his honourable princes, a man that bare deadly hate
unto Israel, with commandment to destroy the people.
So Nicanor came to Jerusalem with a great force; and
sent unto Judas and his brethren deceitfully with friendly
words, saying: — " Let there be no battle between me
and you ; I will come with a few men, that I may see
you in peace." He came therefore to Judas, and they
saluted one another peaceably. Howbeit the enemies
were prepared to take away Judas by violence. Which
thing after it was known to Judas, to wit, that he came
unto him with deceit, he was sore afraid of him, and
would see his face no more. Nicanor also, when he saw
that his counsel was discovered, went out to fight against
Judas beside Capharsalama : where there were slain of
p 2
_^26 I- MACCABEES [vii. 33-47
Nicanor's side about five thousand men, and the rest
fled into the city of David.
After this went Nicanor up to mount Sion, and tnere
came out of the sanctuary certain of the priests and
certain of the elders of the people, to salute him peace-
ably and to shew him the burnt sacrifice that was offered
for the king. But he mocked them, and laughed at
them, and abused them shamefully, and spake proudly,
and sware in his wrath, saying:—" Unless Judas and
his host be now delivered into my hands, if ever I come
again in safety, I will burn up this house:" and with
that he went out in a great rage. Then the priests
entered in, and stood before the altar and the temple,
weeping, and saving :-" Thou, O Lord, didst choose
this house to be called by Thv name, and to be a house
of prayer and petition for Thy people : be avenged of
this man and his host, and let thern fall by the sworo :
remember their blasphemies, and suffer them not to con-
tinue anv longer. " • u 1 1 •
So Nicanor went out of Jerusalem, and pitcheo his
tents in Bethhoron, where an host out of Syria met him.
But Judas pitched in Adasa with three thousand men,
and there he praved, saying :— " O Lord, when they that
were sent from the king of the Assyrians blasphemed,
Thine angel went out, and smote an hundred fourscore
and five thousand of them. Even so destroy Thou this
host before us this day, that the rest may know that he
hath spoken blasphemously against Thy sanctuary, and
judge Thou him according to his wickedness." So the
thirteenth day of the month x\dar the hosts joined battle :
but Nicanor's host was discomfited, and he himself was
first slain in the battle. Now when Nicanor's host saw
that he was slain, they cast away their weapons, and
fled. Then they pursued after them a day's journey,
from Adasa unto Gazara, sounding an alarm after them
with their trumpets. Whereupon they came forth out
of all the towns of Judsea round about, and closed them
in ; so that they, turning back upon them that pursued
them, were all slain with the sword, and not one of
them was left. Afterwards they took the spoils, and
the prey, and smote off Nicanor's head, and his right
hand, which he stretched out so proudly, and brought
vii. 48— viii. II] I. MACCABEES 427
them away, and hanged them up toward Jerusalem. For
this cause the people rejoiced greatly, and they kept that
day a day of great gladness. Moreover they ordained
to keep yearly this day, being the thirteenth of Adar.
Thus the land" of Judah was in rest a little while.
Now Judas had heard of the fame of the Romans, that
they were mighty and valiant men, and such as would
lovingly accept all that joined themselves unto them, and
make a league of amity with all that came unto them ;
and that they were men of great valour. It was told
him also of their wars and noble acts which they had
done among the Gauls, and how they had conquered
them, and brought them under tribute; and what they
had done in the country of Spain, for the winning of the
mines of the silver and gold which is there ; and that by
their policy and patience they had conquered all the
place, though it were very far from them, and the kings
also that came against them from the uttermost part
of the earth, till they had discomfited them, and given
them a great overthrow, so that the rest did give them
tribute every year. Beside this was it told him how they
had discomfited in battle Philip, and Perseus, king of
Chittim, with others that lifted up themselves against
them, and had overcome them : how also Antiochus the
great king of Asia, that came against them in battle,
having an hundred and twenty elephants, with horse-
men, and chariots, and a very great army, was discom-
fited bv them ; and how they took him alive, and coven-
anted that he and such as reigned after him should pay
a great tribute, and give hostages, and that vvhich was
agreed upon, and the country of India, and Media, and
Lydia, and of the goodliest countries, which they took
of him, and gave to king Eumencs : moreover how they
of Greece had determined to come and destroy them ;
and that they, having knowledge thereof, sent against
them a certain captain, and fighting with them slew-
many of them, and carried away captives their wives and
their children, and spoiled them, and took possession of
their lands, and pulled down their strong holds, and
brought them to be their servants unto this day.
It was told him besides, how they destroyed and
brought under their dominion all other kingdoms and
428 I. MACCABEES [viii. 12-26
isles that at any time resisted them ; but with their
friends and such' as relied upon them they kept amity :
and that thev had conquered kingdoms both far and
nigh, insomuch as all that heard of their name were
afraid of them : also that, whom they would help to a
kingdom, those reign ; and whom again they would,
they displace : finally, that they were greatly exalted :
yet for all this none of them wore a crown, or was
clothed in purple, to be magnified thereby : moreover
how they had made for themselves a senate house,
wherein three hundred and twenty men sat in council
daily, consulting alway for the people, to the end they
m.ight be well ordered : and that they committed their
government to one man every year, who ruled over all
their country, and that all were obedient to that one,
and that there was neither envy nor emulation among
them.
In consideration of these things, Judas chose Eupo-
lemus the son of John, the son of Accos, and Jason the
son of Eleazar, and sent them to Rome, to make a
league of amity and confederacy with them, and to
intreat them that they would take the yoke from them ;
for they saw that the kingdom of the Greeks did oppress
Israel with servitude. They went therefore to Rome,
which was a very great journey, and came into the
senate, where they spake and said: — "Judas Macca-
bseus with his brethren, and the people of the Jews, have
sent us unto you, to make a confederacy and peace with
you, and that we might be registered your confederates
and friends." So that m.atter pleased the Romans well.
And this is the copy of the epistle v/hich the senate wrote
back again in tables of brass, and sent to Jerusalem, that
there they might have by them a memorial of peace and
confederacy : —
" Good success be to the Romans, and to the people
of the Jews, by sea and by land for ever : the sword also
and enemy be far from them. If there come first any
war upon the Romans or any of their confederates
throughout all their dominion, the people of the Jews
shall help them, as the time shall be appointed, with all
their heart : neither shall they give any thing unto
them that make war upon them, or aid them with
viii. 27— ix. 8] I. MACCABEES 429
victuals, weapons, money, or ships, as it hath seemed
good unto the Romans ; but they shall keep their
covenants without taking any thing therefore. In the
same manner also, if war come first upon the nation of
the Jews, the Romans shall help them with all their
heart, according as the time shall be appointed them :
neither shall victuals be given to them that take part
against them, or weapons, or money, or ships, as it hath
seemed good to the Romans ; but they shall keep their
covenants, and that without deceit. " According to these
articles did the Romans make a covenant with the people
of the Jews. " Howbeit if hereafter the one party or the
other shall think meet to add or diminish any thing, they
may do it at their pleasures, and whatsoever they shall
add or take away shall be ratified. And as touching the
evils that Demetrius doeth to the Jews, we have written
unto him, saying, Wherefore hast thou made thy yoke
heavy upon our friends and confederates the Jews? If
therefore they complain any more against thee, we
will do them justice, and fight with thee by sea and by
land."
Furthermore when Demetrius heard that Nicanor and
his host were slain in battle, he sent Bacchides and
Alcimus into the land of Judaea the second time, and
with them the chief strength of his host : who went
forth by the way that leadeth to Gilgal, and pitched their
tents before Masaloth, which is in Arbela, and after
they had won it, they slew much people. Also the first
month of the hundred fifty and second year they
encamped before Jerusalem : from whence they removed,
and went to Berea, with twenty thousand footmen and
two thousand horsemen.
Now Judas had pitched his tents at Elasa, and three
thousand chosen men with him : who seeing the multi-
tude of the other army to be so great were sore afraid ;
whereupon many conveyed themselves out of the host,
insomuch as there abode of them no more but eight
hundred men. When Judas therefore saw that his host
slipt away, and that the battle pressed upon him, he
was sore troubled in mind, and much distressed, for
that he had no time to gather them together. Never-
theless unto them that remained he said : — " Let us
430 I. MACCABEES [ix. 9-24
arise and go up ag-ainst our enemies, if peradventure
we may be able to fight with them. " But they dehorted
him, saying: — "We shall never be able: let us now
rather save our lives, and hereafter we will return with
our brethren, and fight against them : for we are but
few." Then Judas said: — "God forbid that I should
do this thing, and flee away from them : if our time be
come, let us' die manfully for our brethren, and let us
not stain our honour."
With that the host of Bacchides removed out of their
tents, and stood over against them., their horsemen
being divided into two troops, and their slingers and
archers going before the host, and they that marched
in the forev/ard were all mighty men. As for Bacchides,
he was in the right wdng : so the host drew near on the
two parts, and sounded their trumpets. They also of
Judas' side, even they sounded their trumpets also, so
that the earth shook at the noise of the armies, and the
battle continued from morning till night. Now when
Judas perceived that Bacchides and the strength of his
army were on the right side, he took with him all the
hardy men, who discomfited the right wing, and pur-
sued them unto the mount Azotus. But when they of
the left wing saw that they of the right wing were dis-
comfited, they followed upon Judas and those that were
with him hard at the heels from behind : whereupon
there was a sore battle, insomuch as many were slain
on both parts. Judas also was killed, and the remnant
fled. Then Jonathan and Simon took Judas their
brother, and buried him in the sepulchre of his fathers
in Modin. Moreover they bewailed him, and all Israel
made great lamentation for him, and mourned many
days, saying: — "How is the valiant man fallen, the
saviour of Israel !" As for the other things concerning
Judas and his wars, and the noble acts which he did,
and his greatness, they are not written : for thev were
very many.
Now after the death of Judas the wicked began to
put forth their heads in all the coasts of Israel, and
there arose up all such as wrought iniquity. In those
days also v/as there a very great famine, by reason
whereof the country revolted, and went with them.
ix. 25-40] I. MACCABEES 431
Then Bacchides chose the wicked men, and made them
lords of the country. And they made enquiry and search
for Judas' friends', and brought them unto Bacchides,
who took vengeance of them, and used them despite-
fully. So was there a great affliction in Israel, the like
whereof was not since the time that a prophet was not
seen among them.
For this cause all Judas' friends came together, and
said unto Jonathan :— " Since thy brother Judas died,
we have no man like him to go forth against our ene-
mies, and Bacchides, and against them of our nation
that are adversaries to us. Now therefore we have
chosen thee this day to be our prince and captain in his
stead, that thou mayest fight our battles." Upon this
Jonathan took the governance upon him at that time,
and rose up instead of his brother Judas. But when
Bacchides gat knowledge thereof, he sought for to slay
him. Then Jonathan, and Simon his brother, and all
that were with him, perceiving that, fled into the wil-
derness of Tekoah, and pitched their tents by the water
of the pool Asphar. Which when Bacchides under-
stood, he came near to Jordan with all his host upon
the sabbath day.
Now Jonathan had sent his brother John, a captain
of the people, to pray his friends the Nabathaeans, that
they might leave with them their baggage, which was
much. But the children of Jambri came out of IVIedaba,
and took John, and all that he had, and went their way
with it. After this came word to Jonathan and Simon
his brother, that the children of Jambri made a great
marriage, and were bringing the bride from Nadabath
with a great train, as being the daughter of one of the
great princes of Canaan. Therefore they remembered
John their brother, and went up, and hid themselves
under the covert of the mountain : where they lifted up
their eyes, and looked, and, behold, there was much
ado and much baggage ; and the bridegroom came
forth, and his friends and brethren, to meet them with
drums, and instruments of music, and many weapons.
Then Jonathan and they that were with him rose up
against them from the place where they lay in ambush,
and made a slaughter of them in such sort, as many fell
432 I. MACCABEES [ix. 41-57
down dead, and the remnant fled into the mountain, and
they took all their spoils. Thus was the marriage
turned into mourning, and the noise of their melody
into lamentation.
So when they had avenged fully the blood of their
brother, they turned again to the marsh of Jordan. Now
when Bacchides heard hereof, he came on the sabbath
day unto the banks of Jordan with a great power. Then
Jonathan said to his company: — " Let us go up now
and fight for our lives, for it standeth not with us to-
day, as in time past : for, behold, the battle is before us
and behind us, and the water of Jordan on this side and
that side, the marsh likewise and wood, neither is there
place for us to turn aside. Wherefore cry ye now unto
heaven, that ye may be delivered from the hand of your
enemies." With that they joined battle, and Jonathan
stretched forth his hand to smite Bacchides, but he
turned back from him. Then Jonathan and they that
were with him leapt into Jordan, and swam over unto
the farther bank : howbeit the other passed not over
Jordan unto them. So there were slain of Bacchides'
side that day about a thousand men.
Afterward returned Bacchides to Jerusalem, and re-
paired the strong cities in Judae-a ; the fort in Jericho,
and Emmaus, and Bethhoron, and Bethel, and Timnath,
Pharathon, and Tephon, these did he strengthen with
high walls, with gates, and with bars. And in them he
set a garrison, that they might work malice upon Israel.
He fortified also the city Bethsura, and Gazara, and the
citadel, and put forces in them, and provision of victuals.
Besides, he took the chief men's sons in the country for
hostages, and put them into the tower at Jerusalem to
be kept. Moreover in the hundred fifty and third year,
in the second month, Alcimus commanded that the wall
of the inner court of the sanctuary should be pulled
down ; he pulled down also the works of the prophets.
And as he began to pull down, even at that time was
Alcimus plagued, and his enterprizes hindered : for his
mouth was stopped, and he was taken with a palsy, so
that he could no more speak any thing, nor give order
concerning his house. So Alcimus died at that time
with great torment. Now when Bacchides saw that
ix. 58-72] I. MACCABEES 433
Alcimus was dead, he returned to the king : whereupon
the land of Judaea was in rest two years.
Then all the ungodly men held a council, saying: —
" Behold, Jonathan and his company are at ease, and
dwell without care : now therefore we will bring Bac-
chides hither, who shall take them all in one night."
So they went and consulted with him. Then removed
he, and came with a great host, and sent letters privily
to his adherents in Judaea, that they should take Jona-
than and those that were with him : howbeit they could
not, because their counsel was known unto them.
Wherefore they took of the men of the country, that
were authors of that mischief, about fifty persons, and
slew them.
Afterward Jonathan, and Simon, and they that were
with him, got them away to Bethbasi, which is in the
wilderness, and they repaired the decays thereof, and
made it strong. Which thing when Bacchides knew, he
gathered together all his host, and sent word to them
that were of Juda?a. Then went he and laid siege
against Bethbasi ; and they fought against it a long
season, and made engines of war. But Jonathan left
his brother Simon in the city, and went forth himself
into the country, and with a certain number went he
forth. And he smote Odomera and his brethren, and
the children of Phasiron in their tent. And when he
began to smite them, and came up with his forces,
Simon and his company went out of the city, and
burned up the engines of war, and fought against
Bacchides, who was discomfited by them, and they
afflicted him sore : for his counsel and travail was in
vain. Wherefore he was very wroth at the wicked
men that gave him counsel to come into the country,
insomuch as he slew many of them, and purposed to
return into his own country. Whereof when Jonathan
had knowledge, he sent ambassadors unto him, to the
end he should make peace with him, and deliver them
the prisoners. Which thing he accepted, and did ac-
cording to his demands, and sware unto him that he
would never do him harm all the days of his life. When
therefore he had restored unto him the prisoners that he
had taken aforetime out of the land of Judaea, he re-
434 I- MACCABEES [ix. 73— x. 16
turned and went his way into his own land, neither
came he any more into their borders. Thus the sword
ceased from Israel : but Jonathan dwelt at Michmash,
and began to govern the people ; and he destroyed the.
ungodly men out of Israel.
In the hundred and sixtieth year Alexander, the son
of Antiochus surnamed Epiphanes, went up and took
Ptolemais : for the people had received him, by means
whereof he reigned there. Now when king Demetrius
heard thereof, he gathered together an exceeding great
host, and went forth against him to fight. Moreover
Demetrius sent letters unto Jonathan with loving words,
so as he m.agnified him. For said he : — " Let us first
make peace with him, before he join with Alexander
against us : else he will remember all the evils that we
have done against him, and against his brethren and
his people." Wherefore he gave him authority to
gather together an host, and to provide weapons, that
he might aid him in battle : he commanded also that
the hostages that were in the tower should be delivered
him.
Then came Jonathan to Jerusalem, and read the letters
in the audience of all the people, and of them that were
in the citadel : who were sore afraid, when they heard
that the king had given him authority to gather together
an host. Whereupon they of the citadel delivered their
hostages unto Jonathan, and he delivered them unto
their parents. This done, Jonathan settled himself in
Jerusalem, and began to build and repair the city. And
he commanded the workmen to build the walls and the
mount Sion round about with square stones for fortifica-
tion ; and they did so. Then the strangers, that were in
the fortresses which Bacchides had built, fled away ;
insomuch as every man left his place, and went into his
own country. Only at Bethsura certain of those that
had forsaken the law and the commandments remained
still : for it was their place of refuge.
Now when king Alexander had heard what promises
Demetrius had sent unto Jonathan : when also it was
told him of the battles and noble acts which he and his
brethren had done, and of the pains that they had en-
dured, he said : — " Shall we find such another man?
X- 17-33] I.MACCABEES 435
now therefore we will make him our friend and con-
federate." Upon this he wrote a letter, and sent it
unto him, according to these words, saying: — " King
Alexander to his brother Jonathan sendeth greeting :
We have heard of thee, that thou art a man of great
power, and meet to be our friend. Wherefore now this
day we ordain thee to be the high priest of thy nation,
and to be called the king's friend;" (and therewithal he
sent him a purple robe and a crown of gold :) " and re-
quire thee to take our part, and keep friendship with us. ' *
So in the seventh month of the hundred and sixtieth
year, at the feast of the tabernacles, Jonathan put on
the holy robe, and gathered together forces, and pro-
vided much armour. Whereof when Demetrius heard,
he was very sorry, and said : — " What have we done,
that Alexander hath anticipated us in making amity with
the Jews to strengthen himself? I also will write unto
them words of encouragement, and promise them digni-
ties and gifts, that I may have their aid. " He sent unto
them therefore to this eftect : — " King Demetrius unto
the people of the Jews sendeth greeting : Whereas ye
have kept covenants with us, and continued in our
friendship, not joining yourselves with our enemies, we
have heard hereof, and are glad. Wherefore now con-
tinue ye still to be faithful unto us, and we will well
recompense you for the things ye do in our behalf, and
will grant you many immunities, and give you rewards.
And now do I free you, and for your sake I release all
the Jews, from tributes, and from the customs of salt,
and from crown taxes, and from that which appertain-
eth unto me to receive for the third part of the seed, and
the half of the fruit of the trees, I release it from this
day forth, so that they shall not be taken of the land of
Judsea, nor of the three governments which are added
thereunto out of the country of Samaria and Galilee,
from this day forth for evermore. Let Jerusalem also
be holy and free, with the borders thereof, both from
tenths and tributes. And as for the citadel which is at
Jerusalem, I yield up my authority over it, and give it
to the high priest, that he may set in it such men as he
shall choose to keep it. Moreover I freely set at liberty
every one of the Jews, that were carried captives out of
436 I. MACCABEES [x. 34-45
the land of Judaea into any part of my kingdom, and
I will that all my officers remit the tributes even of their
cattle. Furthermore I will that all the feasts, and sab-
baths, and new moons, and solemn days, and the three
days before the feast, and the three days after the feast,
shall be all days of immunity and freedom for all the
Jews in my realm. Also no man shall have authority to
meddle with them, or to molest any of them in any
matter.
" I will further, that there be enrolled among the
king's forces about thirty thousand men of the Jews,
unto whom pay shall be given, as belongeth to all the
king's forces. And of them some shall be placed in the
king's strong holds, of whom also some shall be set
over the affairs of the kingdom, which are of trust :
and I will that their overseers and governors be of them-
selves, and that they live after their own laws, even as
the king hath commanded in the land of Judaea. And
concerning the three governments that are added to
Judaea from the country of Samaria, let them be joined
with Judaea, that they may be reckoned to be under
one, nor bound to obey other authority than the high
priest's. As for Ptolemais, and the land pertaining
thereto, I give it as a free gift to the sanctuary at Jeru-
salem for the necessary expenses of the sanctuary.
Moreover I give every year fifteen thousand shekels of
silver out of the king's accounts from the places apper-
taining. And all the overplus, which the officers payed
not in as in former time, from henceforth shall be given
toward the works of the temple. And beside this, the
five thousand shekels of silver, which they took from the
uses of the temple out of the accounts year by year,
•even those things shall be released, because they apper-
tain to the priests that minister. And whosoever they
be that flee unto the temple at Jerusalem, or be within
the liberties thereof, being indebted unto the king, or
for any other matter, let them be at liberty, and all that
they have in my realm. For the building also and re-
pairing of the works of the sanctuary expenses shall be
given of the king's accounts. Yea, and for the building
of the walls of Jerusalem, and the fortifying thereof
round about, expenses shall be given out of the king's
X. 46-60] I. MACCABEES 437
accounts, as also for the building of the walls in
Judaea."
Now when Jonathan and the people heard these words,
they gave no credit unto them, nor received them, be-
cause they remembered the great evil that he had done
in Israel ; for he had afflicted them very sore. But with
Alexander they were well pleased, because he was the
first that intreated of true peace with them, and they
were confederate with him always. Then gathered
king Alexander great forces, and camped over against
Demetrius. And after the two kings had joined battle,
Demetrius' host fled : but Alexander followed after him,
and prevailed against them. And he continued the battle
very sore until the sun went down : and that day was
Demetrius slain.
Afterward Alexander sent ambassadors to Ptolemy
king of Egypt with a message to this effect : — " Foras-
much as I am come again to my realm, and am set in
the throne of my progenitors, and have gotten the
dominion, and overthrown Dem.etrius, and recovered
our country; for after I had joined battle with him, both
he and his host was discomfited by us, so that we sit in
the throne of his kingdom : now therefore let us make
a league of amity together, and give me now thy
daughter to wife : and 1 will be thy son in law, and will
give both thee and her gifts according to thy dignity."
Then Ptolemy the king gave answer, saying : — " Happy
be the day v/herein thou didst return into the land of
thy fathers, and satest in the throne of their kingdom.
And now will I do to thee, as thou hast written : meet me
therefore at Ptolemais, that we mav see one another ; for
I will marry my daughter to thee according to thy desire. ' '
So Ptolemy went out of Egypt with his daughter
Cleopatra, and they came unto Ptolemais in the hundred
threescore and second year : where king Alexander meet-
ing him, he gave unto him his daughter Cleopatra, and
celebrated her marriage at Ptolemais with great glory,
as the manner of kings is. Now king Alexander had
written unto Jonathan, that he should come and meet
him. Who thereupon went honourably to Ptolemais,
where he met the tv/o kings, and gave them and their
frie,nds silver and gold, and many presents, and found
438 I. ]V/[ACCABEES [x. 61-76
favour in their sight. At that time certain pestilent
fellows of Israel, men of a wicked life, assembled them-
selves against him, to accuse him : but the king would
not hear them. Yea more than that, the king com-
manded to take off his garments, and clothe him m
purple : and they did so. Also he made him sit by him-
self, and said unto his princes : — " Go with him into
the midst of the city, and make proclamation, that no
man complain against him of any matter, and that no
man trouble him for any manner of cause." Now when
his accusers saw that he was honoured according to
the proclamation, and clothed in purple, they fled all
away. So the king honoured him, and wrote him among
his chief friends, and made him a duke, and partaker
of his dominion. Afterward Jonathan returned to Jeru-
salem with peace and gladness.
Furthermore in the hundred threescore and fifth year
came Demetrius son of Demetrius out of Crete into the
land of his fathers : whereof when king Alexander heard
tell, he was right sorry, and returned into Antioch. Then
Demetrius made ApoUonius the governor of Coelosyria
his general, who gathered together a great host, and
camped in Jamnia, and sent unto Jonathan the high
priest, saying : — " Thou alone liftest up thyself against
us, and I am laughed to scorn for thy sake, and re-
proached : and why dost thou vaunt thy power against
us in the mountains? Now therefore, if thou trustest
in thine own strength, come down to us into the plain
field, and there let us try the matter together : for with
me is the power of the cities. Ask and learn who I am,
and the rest that take our part, and they shall tell thee
that thy foot is not able to stand before our face; for
thy fathers have been twice put to flight in their own
land. Wherefore now thou shalt not be able to abide
the horsemen and so great a power in the plain, where
is neither stone nor flint, nor place to flee unto.''
So when Jonathan heard these words of ApoUonius, he
was moved in his mind, and choosing ten thousand men
he went out of Jerusalem, where Simon his brother met
him for to help him. And he pitched his tents against
Joppa : but they of Joppa shut him out of the city, be-
cause ApoUonius had a garrison there. Then Jonathan
X. 77— xi. 4] I. MACCABEES 439
laid siege unto it : whereupon they of the city let him
in for fear : and so Jonathan won Joppa. Whereof
when Apollonius heard, he took three thousand horse-
men, with a great host of footmen, and went to Azotus
as one that journeyed, and therewithal drew him forth
into the plain, because he had a great number of horse-
men, in whom he put his trust. Then Jonathan followed
after him to Azotus, where the armies joined battle.
Now Apollonius had left a thousand horsemen in
ambush. And Jonathan knew that there was an am-
bushment behind him ; for they had compassed in his
host, and cast darts at the people, from morning till
evening. But the people stood still, as Jonathan had
commanded them : and so the enemies' horses were
tired. Then brought Simon forth his host, and set them
against the footmen, (for the horsemen were spent,) who
were discomfited by him, and fled. The horsemen also,
being scattered in the field, fled to Azotus, and went into
Beth-dagon, their idol's temple, for safety. But Jona-
than set fire on Azotus, and the cities round about it,
and took their spoils; and the temple of Dagon, with
them that were fled into it, he burned with fire. Thus
there were burned and slain Vv'ith the sword well nigh
eight thousand men. And from thence Jonathan re-
moved his host, and camped against Ascalon, where the
men of the city came forth, and met him with great
pomp. After this returned Jonathan and his host unto
Jerusalem, having many spoils. Now v/hen king Alex-
ander heard these things, he honoured Jonathan yet
more, and sent him a buckle of gold, as the use is to be
given to such as are of the king's blood : he gave him
also Ekron with the borders thereof in possession.
And the king of P^gypt gathered together a great host,
like the sand that lieth upon the sea shore, and many
ships, and went about through deceit to get Alexander's
kingdom, and join it to his own. Whereupon he took
his journey into Syria in peaceable manner, so as they of
the cities opened unto him, and met him : for king Alex-
ander had commanded them so to do, because he was his
father in law. Now as Ptolemy entered into the cities,
he set in every one of them a garrison of soldiers to
keep it. And when he came near to Azotus, they shewed
440 I. MACCABEES [xi. 5-21
him the temple of Dagon that was burnt, and Azotus
and the suburbs thereof that were destroyed, and the
bodies that were cast abroad, and them that he had
burnt in the battle ; for they had made heaps of them
by the way where he should pass. Also they told the king
whatsoever Jonathan had done, to the intent he might
blame him : but the king held his peace. Then Jonathan
met the king with great pomp at Joppa, where they
saluted one another, and lodged. Afterward Jonathan,
when he had gone with the king to the river called
Eleutherus, returned again to Jerusalem.
King Ptolemy therefore, having gotten the dominion
of the cities by the sea unto Seleucia upon the sea coast,
imagined wicked counsels against Alexander. Where-
upon he sent ambassadors unto king Demetrius, saying :
— " Come, let us make a league betwixt us, and I will
give thee my daughter whom Alexander hath, and thou
shalt reign in thy father's kingdom : for I repent that
I gave my daughter unto him, for he sought to slay
me. " Thus did he slander him, because he was desirous
of his kingdom. Wherefore he took his daughter from
him, and gave her to Demetrius, and forsook Alexander,
so that their hatred was openly known. Then Ptolemy
entered into Antioch, where he set two crowns upon his
head, the crown of Asia, and of Egypt.
But king Alexander was in Cilicia at that season, be-
cause those that dwelt in those parts had revolted from
him. But when Alexander heard of this, he came to
war against him : whereupon king Ptolemy brought
forth his host, and met him with a mighty power, and
put him to flight. So Alexander fled into Arabia, there
to be defended ; but king Ptolemy was exalted : for
Zabdiel the Arabian took off Alexander's head, and sent
it unto Ptolemy. King Ptolemy also died the third day
after, and they that were in the strong holds were slain
one of another. By this means Demetrius reigned in the
hundred threescore and seventh year.
At the same time Jonathan gathered together them
that were in Judsea, to take the citadel that was in Jeru-
salem : and he made many engines of war against it.
Then certain ungodly persons, who hated their own
people, went unto the king, and told him that Jonathan
xi. 22-37] I- MACCABEES 441
besieged the citadel. Whereof when he heard, he was
angry, and immediately removing, he came to Ptolemais,
and wrote unto Jonathan, that he should not lay siege
to the crtadel, but come and speak with him at Ptolemais
in great haste. Nevertheless Jonathan, when he heard
this, commanded to besiege it still : and he chose certain
of the elders of Israel and the priests, and put himself
in peril ; and took silver and gold, and raiment, and
divers presents besides, and went to Ptolemais unto the
king, where he found favour in his sight. And though
certain ungodly men of the people had made complaints
against him, vet the king intreated him as his predeces-
sors had done before, and promoted him in the sight of
all his friends, and confirmed him in the high priesthood,
and in all the honours that he had before, and gave him
preeminence among his chief friends.
Then Jonathan desired the king, that he would make
Judeea free from tribute, as also the three governments,
with the country of Samaria ; and he promised him three
hundred talents. So the king consented, and wrote
letters unto Jonathan of all these things after this
manner : —
" King Demetrius unto his brother Jonathan, and unto
the nation of the Jews, sendeth greeting : We send you
here a copy of the letter which we did write unto our
cousin Lasthenes concerning you, that ye might see it.
King Demetrius unto his father Lasthenes sendeth greet-
ing : W^e are determined to do good to the people of the
Jews, who are our friends, and keep covenants with us,
because of their good will toward us. Wherefore we have
ratified unto them the borders of Judaea, with the three
governments of Aphserema and Lydda and Ramathaim,
that are added unto Juda?a from the country of Samaria,
and all things appertaining unto them, for all such as
do sacrifice in Jerusalem, instead of the payments which
the king received of them yearly aforetime out of the
fruits of the earth and of trees. And as for other things
that belong unto us, of the tithes and customs pertaining
unto us, as also the saltpits, and the crown taxes, which
are due unto us, we discharge them of them all for their
relief. And nothing hereof shall be revoked from this
time forth for ever. Now therefore see that thou make
442 I. MACCABEES [xi. 38-50
a copy of these things, and let it be delivered unto
Jonathan, and set upon the holy mount in a conspicuous
place. "
After this, when king Demetrius saw that the land
was quiet before him, and that no resistance was made
against him, he sent away all his forces, every one to his
own place, except certain bands of mercenaries, whom
he had gathered from the isles of the heathen : wherefore
all the forces of his fathers hated him. Moreover there
was one Tryphon, that had been of Alexander's part
afore, who, seeing that all the host murmured against
Demetrius, went to Imalcue the Arabian, that brought
up Antiochus the young son of Alexander, and lay sore
upon him to deliver him this young Antiochus, that he
might reign in his father's stead : he told him therefore
all that Demetrius had done, and how his men of war
were at enmity with him, and there he remained a long
season.
In the mean time Jonathan sent unto king Demetrius,
that he would cast those of the citadel out of Jerusalem,
and those also in the fortresses : for they fought against
Israel. So Demetrius sent unto Jonathan, saying :■ — " I
will not only do this for thee and thy people, but I will
greatly honour thee and thy nation, if opportunity serve.
Now therefore thou shalt do well, if thou send me men
to help me ; for all my forces are gone from me." Upon
this Jonathan sent him three thousand strong men unto
Antioch : and when they came to the king, the king was
very glad of their coming. Howbeit they that were of
the city gathered themselves together into the midst of
the city, to the number of an hundred and twenty thou-
sand men, and would have slain the king. Wherefore
the king fled into the court, but they of the city kept
the passages of the city, and began to fight. Then the
king called to the Jews for help, who came unto him al!
at once, and dispersing themselves through the city slew-
that day in the city to the number of an hundred thou-
sand. Also they set fire on the city, and gat many spoils
that day, and delivered the king. So when they of the
city saw that the Jews had got the city as they would,
their courage was abated : wherefore they made suppli-
cation to the king, and cried, saying: — "Grant us
xi. 51-65] I. MACCABEES 445
peace, and let the Jews cease from assaulting us and the
city." With that they cast away their weapons, and
made peace ; and the Jews were honoured in the sight of
the king, and in the sight of all that were in his realm ;
and they returned to Jerusalem, having great spoils. So
king Demetrius sat on the throne of his kingdom, and
•the land was quiet before him. Nevertheless he dis-
sembled in all that ever he spake, and estranged himself
from Jonathan, neither rewarded he him according to
the benefits which he had received of him, but troubled
him very sore.
After this returned Tryphon, and with him the young
child Antiochus, who reigned, and was crowned. Then
there gathered unto him all the men of war, whom Deme-
trius had put away, and they fought against Demetrius,
who turned his back and fled. Moreover Tryphon took
the elephants, and won Antioch.
At that time young Antiochus wrote unto Jonathan,
saying: — " I confirm thee in the high priesthood, and
appoint thee ruler over the four governments, and to be
one of the king's friends." Upon this he sent him
golden vessels to be served in, and gave him leave to
drink in gold, and to be clothed in purple, and to wear
a golden buckle. His brother Simon also he made cap-
tain from the place called The Ladder of Tyre unto the
borders of Egypt. Then Jonathan went forth, and
passed through the cities beyond the water, and all the
forces of Syria gathered themselves unto him for to help
him : and when he came to Ascalon, they of the city met
him honourably. From whence he went to Gaza, but
they of Gaza shut him out ; wherefore he laid siege unto
it, and burned the suburbs thereof with fire, and spoiled
them. Afterward, when they of Gaza made supplication
unto Jonathan, he made peace with them, and took the
sons of their chief men for hostages, and sent them to
Jerusalem, and passed through the country unto
Damascus.
Now when Jonathan heard that Demetrius' princes
were come to Kadesh, which is in Galilee, with a great
power, purposing to remove him out of the country, he
went to meet them, and left Simon his brother in the
country. Then Simon encamped against Bethsura, and
444 I- MACCABEES [xi. 66— xii. 7
fought against it a long season, and shut it up : but they
desired to have peace with him, which he granted them,
and then put them out from thence, and took the city,
and set a garrison in it. As for Jonathan and his host,
they pitched at the water of Gennesareth, from whence
betimes in the morning they gat them to the plain of
Hazor. And, behold, the host of strangers met them
in the plain, who, having laid men in ambush for him in
the mountains, came themselves over against him. So
when they that lay in ambush rose out of their places,
and joined battle, all that were of Jonathan's side fled;
insomuch as there was not one of them left, except Mat-
tathias the son of Absalom, and Judas the son of Calphi,
the captains of the host. Then Jonathan rent his clothes,
and cast earth upon his head, and prayed. Afterwards
turning again to battle, he put them to flight, and so
they ran away. Now when his own men that were fled
saw this, they turned again unto him, and with him
pursued them to Kadesh, even unto their own tents, and
there they camped. So there were slain of the heathen
that day about three thousand men : but Jonathan
returned to Jerusalem.
Now when Jonathan saw that the time served him, he
chose certain men, and sent them to Rome, for to con-
firm and renew the friendship that they had with them.
He sent letters also to the Spartans, and to other places,
for the same purpose. So they went unto Rome, and
entered into the senate, and said : — " Jonathan the high
priest, and the people of the Jews, sent us unto you, to
the end ye should renew the friendship, which ye had
with them, and league, as in former time." Upon this
the Romans gave them letters unto the governors of
every place, that they should bring them into the land
of Judcca peaceably.
And this is the copy of the letters which Jonathan
wrote to the Spartans :■ —
" Jonathan the high priest, and the elders of the
nation, and the priests, and the other people of the Jews,
unto the Spartans their brethren send greeting : There
were letters sent in times past unto Onias the high priest
from Arius, who reigned then among you, to signify
that ye are our brethren, as the copy here underwritten
xii. 8-24] L MACCABEES 445
doth specify. At which time Onias intreated the am-
bassador that was sent honourably, and received the
letters, wherein declaration was made of the league and
friendship. Therefore we also, albeit we need none of
these things, for that we have the holy books of scripture
in our hands to comfort us, have nevertheless attempted
to send unto you for the renewing of brotherhood and
friendship, lest we should become strangers unto you
altogether : for there is a long time passed since ye sent
unto us. We therefore at all times without ceasing,
both in our feasts, and other convenient days, do remem-
ber" you in the sacrifices which we offer, and in our
prayers, as reason is, and as it becometh us to think upon
our brethren : and we are right glad of your honour.
As for ourselves, we have had great troubles and wars
on every side, forsomuch as the kings that are round
about us have fought against us. Howbeit we would
not be troublesome unto you, nor to others of our con-
federates and friends, in these wars : for we have help
from heaven that succoureth us, so as we are delivered
from our enemies, and our enemies are brought under
foot. For this cause we chose Numenius the son of
Antiochus, and Antipater the son of Jason, and sent
them unto the Romans, to renew the amity that we had
with them, and the former league. We commanded
them also to go unto you, and to salute you, and to
deliver you our letters concerning the renewing of our
brotherhood. Wherefore now ye shall do well to give
us an answer thereto."
And this is the copy of the letters which they sent to
Onias : —
" Arius king of the Spartans to Onias the high priest,
greeting : It is found in writing, that the Spartans and
Jews are brethren, and that they are of the stock of
Abraham : now therefore, since this is come to our
knowledge, ye shall do well to write unto us of your
prosperity. W^e do write back again to you, that your
cattle and goods are ours, and ours are yours. We do
command therefore our ambassadors to make report
unto you on this wise."
Now when Jonathan heard that Demetrius' princes
were come to fight against him with a greater host than
446 I. MACCABEES [xii. 25-40
afore, he removed from Jerusalem, and met them in the
land of Hamath : for he gave them no respite to enter
his country. He sent spies also unto their tents, who
came again, and told him that they were appointed to
come upon them in the night season. Wherefore so soon
as the sun was down, Jonathan commanded his men to
watch, and to be in arms, that all the night long they
might be ready to fight : also he sent forth sentinels
round about the host. But when the adversaries heard
that Jonathan and his men were ready for battle, they
feared, and trembled in their hearts, and they kindled
fires in their camp. Howbeit Jonathan and his com-
pany knew it not till the morning : for they saw the
lights burning. Then Jonathan pursued after them, but
overtook them not : for they were gone over the river
Eleutherus. Wherefore Jonathan turned to the Arab-
ians, who were called Zabadseans, and smote them, and
took their spoils. And removing thence, he camiC to
Damascus, and so passed through all the country.
Simon also went forth, and passed through the country
unto Ascalon, and the holds there adjoining, from
whence he turned aside to Joppa, and won it. For he
had heard that they would deliver the hold unto them
that took Demetrius' part; wherefore he set a garrison
there to keep it.
After this came Jonathan home again, and calling the
•elders of the people together, he consulted with them
about building strong holds in Judaea, and making the
walls of Jerusalem higher, and raising a great mount
between the citadel and the city, for to separate it from
the city, that so it might be alone, that men might
neither sell nor buy in it. Upon this they came together
to build up the city, forasmuch as part of the wall toward
the brook on the east side was fallen down, and they
repaired that which was called Caphenatha. Simon also
set up Adida in the Plain country, and made it strong
with gates and bars.
Now Tryphon went about to get the kingdom of Asia,
and to kill Antiochus the king, that he might set the
crown upon his own head. Howbeit he was afraid that
Jonathan would not suffer him, and that he would fight
against him; wherefore he sought a way how to take
xii. 41— xiii. I] I. MACCABEES 447
Jonathan, that he might kill him. So he removed, and
came to Bethshan. Then Jonathan went out to meet him
with forty thousand men chosen for the battle, and came
to Bethshan. Now when Tryphon saw that Jonathan
came with so great a force, he durst not stretch his
hand against him; but received him honourably, and
commended him unto all his friends, and gave him gifts,
and commanded his men of war to be as obedient^ unto
him, as to himself. Unto Jonathan also he said : —
" Why hast thou put all this people to so great trouble,
seeing there is no war betwixt us ? Therefore send them
now home again, and choose a few men to wait on thee,
and come thou with me to Ptolemais, for I will give it
thee, and the rest of the strong holds and forces, and
all that have any charge : as for me, I will return and
depart : for this is the cause of my coming." So Jona-
than believing him did as he bade him, and sent away
his host, who went into the land of Judaea. And with
himself he retained but three thousand men, of whom he
sent two thousand into Galilee, and one thousand went
with him.
Now as soon as Jonathan entered into Ptolemais, they
of Ptolemais shut the gates, and took him, and all them
that came with him they slew with the sword. Then
sent Tryphon an host of footmen and horsemen into
Galilee, and into the great plain, to destroy all Jona-
than's company. But when they knew that Jonathan
and they that were with him were taken and slain, they
encouraged one another, and went close together, pre-
pared to fight. They therefore that followed upon them,
perceiving that they were ready to fight for their lives,
turned back again. Whereupon they all came into the
land of Judaea peaceably, and there they bewailed Jona-
than, and them that were with him, and they were sore
afraid ; wherefore all Israel made great lamentation.
Then all the heathen that were round about them sought
to destroy them : for said they : — " They have no cap-
tain, nor any to help them : now therefore let us make
war upon them, and take away their memorial from
among men. "
Now when Simon heard that Tryphon had gathered
together a great host to invade the land of Judaea, and
448 I. MACCABEES [xiii. 2-19
destroy it, and saw that the people was in great trem-
bling and fear, he went up to Jerusalem, and gathered
the people together, and gave them exhortation, saying :
— " Ye yourselves know what great things I, and my
brethren, and my father's house, have done for the laws
and the sanctuary, the battles also and troubles which
we have seen, by reason whereof all my brethren are
slain for Israel's sake, and I am left alone. Now there-
fore be it far from me, that I should spare mine own life
in any time of trouble : for I am no better than my
brethren. Doubtless I will avenge my nation, and the
sanctuary, and our wives, and our children : for all the
heathen are gathered to destroy us of very malice.
Now as soon as the people heard these words, their
spirit revived. And they answered with a loud voice,
saying : — " Thou shalt be our leader instead of Judas
and Jonathan thy brother. Fight thou our battles, and
whatsoever thou commandest us, that will we do." So
then he gathered together all the men of war, and made
haste to finish the walls of Jerusalem, and he fortified it
round about. Also he sent Jonathan the son of Absalom,
and with him a great host, to Joppa : who casting out
them that were therein remained there in it. So Tryphon
removed from Ptolemais with a great host to invade
the land of Judcea, and Jonathan was with him in ward.
But Simon pitched his tents at Adida, over against the
Plain.
Now when Tryphon knew that Simon was risen up
instead of his brother Jonathan, and meant to join battle
with him, he sent messengers unto him, saving : —
" Whereas we have Jonathan thy brother in hold, it is
for money that he is owing unto the king's treasure, con-
cerning the business that was committed unto him.
Wherefore now send an hundred talents of silver, and
two of his sons for hostages, that when he is at libertv
he may not revolt from us, and we will let him go."
Hereupon Simon, albeit he perceived that they spake
deceitfully unto him, yet sent he the money and the chil-
dren, lest peradventure he should procure to himself
great hatred of the people, who might have said : —
" Because I sent him not the money and the children,
therefore is Jonathan dead." So he sent them the chil-
xiii. 20-36] I. MACCABEES 449
dren and the hundred talents : howbeit Tryphon dis-
sembled, neither would he let Jonathan go.
And after this came Tryphon to invade the land, and
destroy it, going round about by the way that leadeth
unto Adora : but Simon and his host marched against
him in every place, wheresoever he went. Now they
that were in the citadel sent messengers unto Tryphon,
to the end that he should hasten his coming unto them
by the wilderness, and send them victuals. Wherefore
Tryphon made ready all his horsemen to come that
night : but there fell a very great snow, by reason
whereof he came not. So he departed, and came into
the country of Gilead. And when he came near to Bas-
cama, he slew Jonathan, who was buried there. After-
ward Tryphon returned and went into his own land.
Then sent Simon, and took the bones of Jonathan his
brother, and buried them in Modin, the city of his
fathers. And all Israel made great lamentation for
him., and bewailed him many days. Simon also built a
monument upon the sepulchre of his father and his
brethren, and raised it aloft to the sight, with hewn stone
behind and before. Moreover he set up seven pyramids,
one against another, for his father, and his mother, and
his four brethren. And in these he made cunning de-
vices, about the which he set great pillars, and upon the
pillars he made all their armour for a perpetual memory,
and by the armour ships carved, that they might be
seen of all that sail on the sea. This is the sepulchre
which he made at Modin, and it standeth yet unto this
day.
Now Tryphon dealt deceitfuFly with the young king
Antiochus, and slew him. And he reigned in his stead,
and crowned himself king of Asia, and brought a great
calamity upon the land.
Then Simon built up the strong holds in Judaea, and
fenced them about with high towers, and great walls,
and gates, and bars, and laid up victuals therein. More-
over Simon chose men, and sent to king Demetrius, to
the end he should give the land an immunity, because all
that Tryphon did was to spoil. Unto whom king Deme-
trius answered and wrote after this manner: — "King
Demetrius unto Simon the high priest, and friend of
VOL. II. Q
450 I. MACCABEES [xiii. 37-50
kings, as also unto the elders and nation of the Jews,
sendeth greeting : The golden crown, and the scarlet
robe, which ye sent unto us, we have received : and we
are ready to make a steadfast peace with you, yea, and
to write unto our officers, to confirm the immunities
which we have granted. And whatsoever covenants we
have made with you shall stand ; and the strong holds,
which ye have builded, shall be your own. As for any
oversight or fault committed unto this day, we forgive
it, and the crown tax also, which ye owe us : and if
there were any other tribute paid in Jerusalem, it shall
no more be paid. And look who are meet among you
to be in our court, let them be enrolled, and let there be
peace betwaxt us." Thus the yoke of the heathen was
taken away from Israel in the hundred and seventieth
year. Then the people of Israel began to write in their
instruments and contracts : — " In the first year of Simon
the high priest, the governor and leader of the Jews."
In those days Simon camped against Gaza, and be-
sieged it round about ; he made also an engine of war,
and set it by the city, and battered a certain tower, and
took it. And they that were in the engine leaped into
the city ; whereupon there was a great uproar in the
city : insomuch as the people of the city rent their
clothes, and climbed upon the walls with their wives and
children, and cried with a loud voice, beseeching Simon
to grant them peace. And they said : — " Deal not with
us according to our wickedness, but according to thy
mercy." So Simon was appeased toward them, and
fought no more against them, but put them out of the
city, and cleansed the houses wherein the idols were,
and so entered into it with songs and thanksgiving.
Yea, he put all uncleanness out of it, and placed such
men there as would keep the law, and made it stronger
than it was before, and built therein a dwellingplace
for himself.
They also of the citadel in Jerusalem were kept so
strait, that they could neither come forth, nor go into the
country, nor buy, nor sell : wherefore they were in great
distress for want of victuals, and a great number of
them perished through famine. Then cried they to
Simon, beseeching him to be at one with them : which
xiii. 51— xiv. 12] I. MACCABEES 451
thing he granted them; and when he had put them out
from thence, he cleansed the citadel from pollutions :
and entered into it the three and twentieth day of the
second month, in the hundred seventy and first year,
with thanksgiving, and branches of palm trees, and with
harps, and cymbals, and with viols, and hymns, and
songs : because there was destroyed a great enemy out
of Israel. He ordained also that that day should be kept
every year with gladness. Moreover the hill of the
temple that was by the citadel he made stronger than it
was, and there he dwelt himself with his company. And
when Simon saw that John his son was a valiant man,
he made him captain of all the hosts ; and he dwelt in
Gazara.
Now in the hundred threescore and twelfth year king
Demetrius gathered his forces together, and went into
Media, to get him help to fight against Tryphon. But
when Arsaces, the king of Persia and Media, heard that
Dem.etrius was entered within his borders, he sent one
of his princes to take him alive : who went and smote
the host of Demetrius, and took him, and brought him
to Arsaces, by whom he was put in ward.
As for the land of Judaea, that was quiet all the days
of Simon ; for he sought the good of his nation in such
wise, as that evermore his authority and honour pleased
them well. And as he was honourable in all his acts,
so in this, that he took Joppa for an haven, and made an
entrance to the isles of the sea, and enlarged the bounds
of his nation, and recovered the country, and gathered
together a great number of captives, and had the do-
minion of Gazara, and Bethsura, and the tower, out of
the which he took all uncleanness, neither was there anv
that resisted him. Then did they till their ground in
peace, and the earth gave her increase, and the trees of
the field their fruit. The ancient men sat all in the
streets, communing together of good things, and the
young men put on glorious and warlike apparel. He
provided victuals for the cities, and set in them all man-
ner of munition, so that his honourable name was re-
nowned unto the end of the world. He made peace in
the land, and Israel rejoiced with great jov : for everv
man sat under his vine and his fig tree, and there was
452 L MACCABEES [xiv. 13-27
none to fray them : neither was there any left in the
land to fight against them : yea, the kings themselves
were overthrown in those days. Moreover he strength-
ened all those of his people that were brought low : the
law he searched out; and every contemner of the law
and wicked person he took away. He beautified the
sanctuary, and multiplied the vessels of the temple.
Now when it was heard at Rome, and as far as Sparta,
that Jonathan was dead, they were very sorry. But as
soon as they heard that his brother Simon was made
high priest in his stead, and ruled the country, and the
cities therein, they wrote unto him in tables of brass,
to renew the friendship and league which they had made
with Judas and Jonathan his brethren : which writings
were read before the congregation at Jerusalem. And
this is the copy of the letters that the Spartans sent : —
" The rulers of the Spartans, with the city, unto Simon
the high priest, and the elders, and priests, and residue
of the people of the Jews, our brethren, send greeting :
The ambassadors that were sent unto our people certified
us of your glory and honour : wherefore we were glad
of their coming, and did register the things that they
spake in the council of the people in this manner ; Nume-
nius son of Antiochus, and Antipater son of Jason, the
Jews' ambassadors, came unto us to renew the friend-
ship they had with us. And it pleased the people to
entertain the men honourably, and to put the copy of
their Embassage in public records, to the end the people
of the Spartans might have a memorial thereof : further-
more we have written a copy thereof unto Simon the
high priest. ' '
After this Simon sent Numenius to Rome with a great
shield of gold of a thousand pound weight, to confirm
the league with them. Whereof when the people heard,
they said : — " What thanks shall we give to Simon and
his sons ? For he and his brethren and the house of his
father have established Israel, and chased away in fight
their enemies from them, and confirmed their liberty. "
So then they wrote it in tables of brass, which they
set upon pillars in mount Sion : and this is the copv of
the writing : — " The eighteenth day of the month Elul,
in the hundred threescore and twelfth vear, beine the
xiv. 28-40] I. MACCABEES 453
third year of Simon the high priest, in Asaramel in the
great congregation of the priests, and people, and rulers
of the nation, and elders of the country, were these
things notified unto us. Forasmuch as oftentimes there
have been wars in the country, wherein for the mainten-
ance of their sanctuary, and the law, Simon the son of
Mattathias, of the posterity of Joarib, together with his
brethren, put themselves in jeopardy, and resisting the
enemies of their nation did their nation great honour :
(for after that Jonathan, having gathered his nation to-
gether, and been their high priest, was added to his
people, their enemies purposed to invade their country,
that they might destroy it, and lay hands on the sanc-
tuarv : at which time Simon rose up, and fought for
his nation, and spent much of his own substance, and
armed the valiant men of his nation, and gave them
wages, and fortified the cities of Judaea, together with
Bethsura, that lieth upon the borders of Judaea, where
the armour of the enemies had been before ; but he set
a garrison of Jews there : moreover he fortified Joppa,
which lieth upon the sea, and Gazara, that bordereth
upon Azotus, where the enemies had dwelt before : but
he placed Jews there, and furnished them with all things
convenient for the reparation thereof.) The people there-
fore, seeing the acts of Simon, and unto what glory he
thought to bring his nation, made him their governor
and chief priest, because he had done all these things,
and for the justice and faith which he kept to his nation,
and for that he sought by all means to exalt his people.
For in his time things prospered in his hands, so that
the heathen were taken out of their country, and they
also that were in the city of David in Jerusalem, who
had made themselves a citadel, out of which they issued,
and polluted all about the sanctuary, and did much hurt
in the holy place : but he placed Jews therein, and forti-
fied it for the safety of the country and the city, and
raised up the walls of Jerusalem.
" King Demetrius also confirmed him in the high
priesthood according to those things, and made him one
of his friends, and honoured him with great honour.
For he had heard say, that the Romans had called the
Jews their friends and confederates and brethren ; and
454 I- MACCABEES [xiv. 41— x^-. 5
that they had entertained the ambassadors of Simon
honourably ; also that the Jews and priests were well
pleased that Simon should be their governor and high
priest for ever, until there should arise a faithful pro-
phet; moreover that he should be their captain, and
should take charge of the sanctuary, to set them over
their works, and over the country, and over the armour,
and over the fortresses, that, I say, he should take
charge of the sanctuary ; beside this, that he should be
obeyed of every man, and that all the writings in the
country should be made in his name, and that he should
be clothed in purple, and wear gold : also that it should
be lawful for none of the people or priests to break any
of these things, or to gainsay his words, or to gather an
assembly in the country without him, or to be clothed
in purple, or wear a buckle of gold : and whosoever
should do otherwise, or break any of these things, he
should be punished. Thus it liked all the people to deal
with Simon, and to do as hath been said. Then Simon
accepted hereof, and was well pleased to be high priest,
and captain and governor of the Jews and priests, and
to defend them all."
So they commanded that this writing should be put
in tables of brass, and that they should be set up within
the compass of the sanctuary in a conspicuous place ;
also that the copies thereof should be laid up in the
treasury, to the end that Simon and his sons might have
them.
Moreover Antlochus son of Demetrius the king sent
letters from the isles of the sea unto Simon the priest and
prince of the Jews, and to all the people ; the contents
whereof were these :■ — -
'* King Antiochus to Simon the high priest and prince
of his nation, and to the people of the Jews, greeting :
Forasmuch as certain pestilent men have usurped the
kingdom of our fathers, and my purpose is to challenge
it again, that I may restore it to the old estate, and to
that end have gathered a multitude of foreign soldiers
together, and prepared ships of war ; my meaning also
being to go through the country, that I may be avenged
of them that have destroyed it, and made many cities in
the kingdom desolate : now therefore I confirm unto thee
all the oblations which the kings before me granted thee,
XV. 6-23] I- MACCABEES 455
and whatsoever gifts besides they granted. I give thee
leave also to coin money for thy country with thine own
stamp. And as concerning Jerusalem and the sanctuary,
let them be free ; and all the armour that thou hast made,
and fortresses that thou hast built, and keepest in thine
hands, let them remain unto thee. And if any thing be,
or shall be, owing to the king, let it be forgiven thee
from this time forth for evermore. Furthermore, when
we have obtained our kingdom, we will honour thee, and
thy nation, and thy temple, with great honour, so that
your honour shall be known throughout the world."
In the hundred threescore and fourteenth year went
Antiochus into the land of his fathers : at which time all
the forces came together unto him, so that few were left
with Tryphon. Wherefore being pursued by king Antio-
chus, he fled unto Dor, which lieth by the sea side : for
he saw that troubles came upon him all at once, and
that his forces had forsaken him. Then camped Antio-
chus against Dor, having with him an hundred and
twenty thousand men of war, and eight thousand horse-
men. And when he had compassed the city round about,
and joined ships close to the town on the sea side, he
vexed the city by land and by sea, neither suffered he
any to go out or in.
And Numenius and his company came from Rome,
having letters to the kings and countries ; wherein were
written these things : —
" Lucius, consul of the Romans unto king Ptolemy,
greeting : The Jews' ambassadors, our friends and con-
federates, came unto us to renew the old friendship and
league, being sent from Simon the high priest, and from
the people of the Jews : and they brought a shield of gold
of a thousand pound. We thought it good therefore to
write unto the kings and countries, that they should do
them no harm, nor fight against them, their cities, or
countries, nor vet aid their enemies against them. It
seemed also good to us to receive the shield of them. If
therefore there be any pestilent fellows, that have fled
from their country unto you, deliver them unto Simon
the high priest, that he may punish them according to
their own law. "
The same things wrote he likewise unto Demetrius
the king, and Attalus, to Arathes, and Arsaces. and to
456 I. MACCABEES [xv. 24-36
all the countries, and to Sampsaces, and the Spartans,
and to Delos, and Myndos, and Sicyon, and Caria, and
Samos, and Pamphylia, and Lycia, and Halicarnassus,
and Rhodes, and Phaselis, and Cos, and Side, and Ara-
dus, and Gortyna, and Cnidus, and Cyprus, and Cyrene.
And the copy hereof they wrote to Simon the high priest.
So Antiochus the king camped against Dor the second
day, assaulting it continually, and making engines, by
which means he shut up Tryphon, that he could neither
go out nor in. At that time Simon sent him two thou-
sand chosen men to aid him; silver also, and gold, and
much armour. Nevertheless he would not receive them,
but brake all the covenants which he had made with
him afore, and became strange unto him. Furthermore
he sent unto him Athenobius, one of his friends, to com-
mune with him, and say : — " Ye withhold Joppa and
Gazara, with the citadel that is in Jerusalem, which are
cities of my realm. The borders thereof ye have wasted,
and done great hurt in the land, and got the dominion
of many places within my kingdom. Now therefore
deliver the cities which ye have taken, and the tributes
of the places, whereof ye have gotten dominion with-
out the borders of Judsea : or else give me for them five
hundred talents of silver ; and for the harm that ye have
done, and the tributes of the cities, other five hundred
talents : if not, we will come and fig'ht against you."
So Athenobius the king's friend came to Jerusalem :
and when he saw the glory of Simon, and the cupboard
of gold and silver plate, and his great attendance, he
was astonished, and told him the king's message. Then
answered Simon, and said unto him : — " We have
neither taken other men's land, nor holden that which
appertaineth to others, but the inheritance of our fathers,
which our enemies had wrongfully in possession a certain
time. Wherefore we, having opportunity, hold the in-
heritance of our fathers. And vrhereas thou demandest
Joppa and Gazara, albeit they did great harm unto the
people in our country, yet will we give an hundred talents
for them." Hereunto Athenobius answered him not a
word ; but returned in a rage to the king, and made
report unto him of these speeches, and of the glorv of
Simon, and of all that he had seen : whereupon the king
was exceeding wroth.
XV. 37— '^vi. 10] I. MACCABEES 457
In the mean time fled Tryphon by ship unto Orthosia.
Then the king made Cendebasus captain of the sea coast,
and gave him an host of footmen and horsemen, and
commanded him to remove his host toward JudcEa : also
he commanded him to build up Kidron, and to fortify the
gates, and to war against the people ; but as for the king
himself, he pursued Tryphon. So Cendebajus came to
Jamnia, and began to provoke the people, and to invade
Judaea, and to take the people prisoners, and slay them.
And when he had built up Kidron, he set horsemen there,
and an host of footmen, to the end that issuing out
they might make outroads upon the ways of Judaea, as
the king had commanded him.
Then came up John from Gazara, and told Simon his
father what Cendebaeus had done. Wherefore Simon
called his two eldest sons, Judas and John, and said unto
them: — " I, and my brethren, and my father's house,
have ever from our youth unto this day fought against
the enemies of Israel ; and things have prospered so well
in our hands, that we have delivered Israel oftentimes.
But now I am old, and ye, by God's mercy, are of a
sufBcient age : be ye instead of me and my brother, and
go and fight for our nation, and the help from heaven
be with you." So he chose out of the country twenty
thousand men of war with horsemen, who went out
against Cendebaeus, and rested that night at Modin.
And Vv'hen as they rose in the morning, and went into
the plain, behold, a mighty great host both of footmen
and horsemen came against them : howbeit there was a
water brook betwixt them. So he and his people pitched
over against them : and when he saw that the people
were afraid to go over the water brook, he went first
over himself, and then the men seeing him passed
through after him. That done, he divided his m.en, and
set the horsemen in the midst of the footmen : for the
enemies' horsemen were very many. Then sounded they
with the holy trumpets : whereupon Cendebaeus and his
host were put to flight, so that many of them were slain,
and the remnant gat them to the strong hold. At that
time was Judas John's brother wounded; but John still
followed after them, until he came to Kidron, which
Cendebaeus had built. So they fled even unto the towers
in the fields of Azotus ; wherefore he burned it with fire :
Q 2
458 I. MACCABEES [xvi. 11-24
so that there were slain of them about two thousand
men. Afterward he returned into the land of Judaea in
peace.
Moreover in the plain of Jericho was Ptolemy the
son of Abubus made captain, aad he had abundance of
silver and gold : for he was the high priest's son in law..
Wherefore his heart being lifted up, he thought to get
the country to himself, and thereupon consulted deceit-
fully against Simon and his sons to destroy them. Now
Simon was visiting the cities that were in the country,
and taking care for the good ordering of them ; at which
time he came down himself to Jericho with his sons,
Mattathias and Judas, in the hundred threescore and
seventeenth year, in the eleventh month, called Sebat :
where the son of Abubus receiving them deceitfully into
a little hold, called Dok, which he had built, made them
a great banquet : howbeit he had hid men there. So
when Simon and his sons had drunk largely, Ptolemy
and his men rose up, and took their weapons, and came
upon Simon into the banqueting place, and slew him,
and his two sons, and certain of his servants. In which
doing he committed a great treachery, and recompensed
evil for good.
Then Ptolemy wrote these things, and sent to the
king, that he should send him an host to aid him, and
he would deliver him the country and cities. He sent
others also to Gazara to kill John : and unto the tribunes
he sent letters to come unto him, that he might give
them silver, and gold, and rewards. And others he sent
to take Jerusalem, and the mountain of the temple.
Now one had run afore to Gazara, and told John that
his father and brethren were slain, and, said he, Ptolemy
hath sent to slay thee also. Hereof when he heard, he
was sore astonished : so he laid hands on them that were
come to destroy him., and slew them ; for he knew that
they sought to make him away.
As concerning the rest of the acts of John, and his
wars, and worthy deeds which he did, and the building
of the walls which he made, and his doings, behold,
these are written in the chronicles of his priesthood, from
the time he was made high priest after his father.
THE SECOND BOOK OF THE
MACCABEES
" The brethren, the Jews that be at Jerusalem and in
the land of Judaea, wish unto the brethren, the Jews that
are throughout Egypt, health and peace : God be
gracious unto you, and remember His covenant that He
made with Abraham,. Isaac, and Jacob, His faithful
ser^■ants ; and give you all an heart to serve Him, and
to do His will, with a good courage and a willing mind ;
and open your hearts in His law and commandments,
and send you peace, and hear your prayers, and be at
one with vou, and never forsake you in time of trouble.
And now we be here praying for you.
"What time as Demetrius reigned, in the hundred
threescore and ninth year, we the Jews wrote unto you.
In the extremity of trouble that came upon us in those
years, from the time that Jason and his company revolted
from the holy land and kingdom, and burned the porch,
and shed innocent blood : then we prayed unto the Lord,
and were heard ; we offered also sacrifices and fine flour,
and lighted the lamps, and set forth the loaves. And
now see that ye keep the feast of tabernacles in the
month Chislev.' ^^'ritten in the hundred fourscore and
eighth year.
" The people that are at Jerusalem and in Juda?a, and
the council of the Jews, send greeting and health unto
Aristobulus, king Ptolemy's preceptor, who is of the
stock of the anointed priests, and to the Jews that are
in Egypt : Insomuch as God hath delivered us from great
perils, we thank Him highly, as having been in battle
against a king. For He cast them out that fought
within the holy city. For when the leader was come into
Persia, and tlae army with him that seemed invincible,
they were slain in the temple of Nanaea by the deceit of
Nanaea's priests. For Antiochus, as though he would
459
460 II. MACCABEES [i. 15-25
marry her, came into the place, and his friends that were
with him, to receive money in name of a dowry. Which
when the priests of Nanaea had set forth, and he was
entered with a small company into the compass of the
temple, they shut the temple as soon as Antiochus was
come in : and opening the secret door of the panelled
ceiling, they threw stones like thunderbolts, and struck
down the captain, hewed them in pieces, smote off their
heads, and cast them to those that were without.
Blessed be our God in all things, who hath delivered up
the ungodly.
" Therefore whereas we are now purposed to keep the
purification of the temple upon the five and twentieth day
of the month Chislev, we thought it necessary to certifv
you thereof, that ye also might keep it, as the feast of
the tabernacles, and of the fire, which was given us when
Nehemiah offered sacrifice, after that he had builded the
temple and the altar. For when our fathers were led
into Persia, the priests that were then devout took the
fire of the altar privily, and hid it in an hollow place of
a pit without water, where they kept it sure, so that the
place was unknov/n to all men. Now after many years,
v/hen it pleased God, Nehemiah, being sent from the
king of Persia, did send of the posterity of those priests
that had hid it to the fire : but when they told us they
found no fire, but thick water ; then commanded he them
to draw it up, and to bring it; and when the sacrifices
were laid on, Nehemiah commanded the priests to
sprinkle the wood and the things laid thereupon with the
water. When this was done, and the time came that
the sun shone, which afore was hid in the cloud, there
was a great fire kindled, so that every man marvelled.
And the priests made a prayer whilst the sacrifice was
consuming, both the priests, and all the rest, Jonathan
beginning, and the rest answering thereunto, as
Nehemiah did.
"And the prayer was after this manner; O Lord,
Lord God, Creator of all things, who art fearful and
strong, and righteous, and merciful, and the only and
gracious King, the only giver of all things, the only just,
almighty, and everlasting. Thou that deliverest Israel
from all trouble, and didst choose the fathers, and
i. 26— ii. 7] 11. MACCABEES 461
sanctify them : receive the sacrifice for Thy whole people
Israel, and preserve Thine own portion, and sanctify it.
Gather those together that are scattered from us, deliver
them that serve among the heathen, look upon them that
are despised and abhorred, and let the heathen know that
Thou art our God. Punish them that oppress us, and
with pride do us wrong. Plant Thy people again in
Thy holy place, as Moses hath spoken.
" And the priests sung psalms of thanksgiving.
" Now when the sacrifice Vv'as consumed, Nehemiah
commanded the water that was left to be poured on the
great stones. When this was done, there was kindled
a flame : but it was consumed by the light that shined
from the altar. So when this matter was known, it was
told the king of Persia, that in the place, where the
priests that were led away had hid the fire, there ap-
peared water, and that Nehemiah had purified the sacri-
fices therewith. Then the king, enclosing the place,
made it holy, after he had tried the matter. And the
king took many gifts, and bestowed thereof on those
whom he would gratify. And Nehemiah called this thing
Nephthar, which is as much as to say, a cleansing : but
many men call it Nephthai.
"It is also found in the records, that Jeremiah the
prophet commanded them that were carried away to
take of the fire, as it hath been signified : and how that
the prophet, having given them the law, charged them
not to forget the commandments of the Lord, and that
they should not err in their minds, when they see images
of silver and gold, with their ornaments. And with other
such speeches exhorted he them, that the law should not
depart from their hearts. It was also contained in the
same writing, that the prophet, being warned of God,
commanded the tabernacle and the ark to go with him,
as he went forth into the mountain, where Moses climbed
up, and saw the heritage of God. And when Jeremiah
came thither, he found an hollow cave, wherein he laid
the tabernacle, and the ark, and the altar of incense, and
so stopped the door. And some of those that followed
him came to mark the way, but they could not find it.
Which when Jeremiah perceived, he'blamed them, say-
ing. As for that place, it shall be unknown until the
462 11. MACCABEES [ii. 8-22
time that God gather His people again together, and
receive them unto mercy. Then shall the Lord shew
them these things, and the glory of the Lord shall ap-
pear, and the cloud also, as it was shewed under Moses,
and as when Solomon desired that the place might be
honourably sanctified.
" It was also declared, that he, being wise, offered the
sacrifice of dedication, and of the finishing of the temple.
And as when Moses prayed unto the Lord, the fire came
down from heaven, and consumed the sacrifices : even
so prayed Solomon also, and the fire came down from
heaven, and consumed the burnt offerings. And Moses
said, Because the sin offering was not to be eaten, it w'as
consumed. So Solomon kept those eight days.
" The same things also were reported in the writings
and commentaries of Nehemiah ; and how he founding a
library gathered together the acts of the kings, and the
prophets, and of David, and the epistles of the kings
concerning the holy gifts. In like manner also Judas
gathered together all those things that were lost by
reason of the war we had, and they remain with us.
Wherefore if ye have need thereof, send some to fetch
them unto you. Whereas we then are about to celebrate
the purification, we have written unto you, and ye shall
do well, if ye keep the same days. We hope also, that the
God, that delivered all His people, and gave them all an
heritage, and the kingdom, and the priesthood, and the
sanctuary, as He promised in the law, will shortly have
mercy upon us, and gather us together out of every land
under heaven into the holy place : for He hath delivered
us out of great troubles, and hath purified the place."
Now as concerning Judas Maccabasus, and his
brethren, and the purification of the great temple, and
the dedication of the altar, and the wars against Antio-
chus Epiphanes, and Eupator his son, and the manifest
signs that came from heaven unto those that behaved
themselves manfully to their honour for Judaism : so that,
being but a few, they overcame the whole country, and
chased barbarous multitudes, and recovered again the
temple renowned all the world over, and freed the city,
ii. 23— iii. 6] IL MACCABEES 463
and upheld the laws which were going down, the Lord
being gracious unto them with all favour : all these
things, I say, being declared by Jason of Gyrene in five
books, we will assay to abridge in one volume. For
considering the infinite number, and the difficulty which
they find that desire to look into the narrations of the
story, for the variety of the matter, we have been careful,
that they that will read may haA-e delight, and that they
that are desirous to commit to memory might have ease,
and that all into whose hands it comes might have profit.
Therefore to us, that have taken upon us this painful
labour of abridging, it was not easy, but a matter of
sweat and watching ; even as it is no ease unto him that
prepareth a banquet, and seek^th the benefit of others :
yet for the pleasuring of many Ave wall undertake gladly
this great pains ; leaving to the author the exact hand-
ling of every particular, and labouring to follow the rules
of an abridgement. For as the master builder of a new
house must care for the whole building ; but he that
undertaketh to set it out, and paint it, must seek out fit
things for the adorning thereof : even so I think it is
with us. To stand upon every point, and go over things
at large, and to be curious in particulars, belongeth to
the first author of the story : but to use brevity, and
avoid much labouring of the v/ork, is to be granted to
him that will make an abridgement. Here then will we
begin the story : only adding thus much to that which
hath been said, that it is a foolish thing to make a long
prologue, and to be short in the story itself.
Now when the holy city was inhabited with all peace,
and the laws were kept very w^ell, because of the godli-
ness of Onias the high priest, and his hatred of wicked-
ness, it came to pass that even the kings themselves did
honour the place, and magnify the temple with their best
gifts; insomuch that Seleucus king of Asia of his own
revenues bare all the costs belonging to the service of the
sacrifices. But one Sim.on of the tribe of Benjamin, who
was made governor of the temple, fell out with the high
priest about disorder in the city. And when he could not
overcome Onias, he gat him to Apollonius the son of
Thrasaeus, who then was governor of Coelosyria and
Phenicia, and told him that the treasury in Jerusalem
464 11. MACCABEES [iii. 7-17
was full of infinite sums of money, so that the multitude
of their riches, which did not pertain to the account of
the sacrifices, was innumerable, and that it was possible
to bring all into the king's hand.
Now when Apollonius came to the king, and had
shewed him of the money whereof he was told, the king
chose out Heliodorus his treasurer, and sent him with
a commandment to bring him the foresaid money. So
forthwith Heliodorus took his journey, under a colour of
visiting the cities of Coelosyria and Phenicia, but indeed
to fulfil the king's purpose. And when he was come to
Jerusalem, and had been courteously received of the
high priest of the city, he told him v/hat intelligence
was given of the money, and declared wherefore he
came, and asked if these things were so indeed. Then
the high priest told him that there was such money laid
up for the relief of widows and fatherless children : and
that some money belonged to Hyrcanus, son of Tobias,
a man of great dignity, and that the case was not as that
wicked Simon had misinformed : and that in all there
were four hundred talents of silver, and two hundred of
gold : and that it was altogether impossible that such
wrongs should be done unto them, that had committed
it to the holiness of the place, and to the majesty and
inviolable sanctity of the temple, honoured over all the
world.
But Heliodorus, because of the king's commandment
given him, said that in any wise it must be brought into
the king's treasury. So at the day which he appointed
he entered in to order this matter : wherefore there was
no small agony throughout the whole city. But the
priests, prostrating themselves before the altar in their
priests' vestments, called unto heaven upon Him that
made a law concerning things given to be kept, that thev
should safely be preserved for such as had committed
them to be kept.
Then whoso had looked the high priest in the face, it
would have wounded his heart : for his countenance and
the changing of his colour declared the inward agonv of
his mind. For the man was so compassed with fear and
horror of the body, that it was manifest to them that
looked upon him, what sorrow he had now in his heart.
iii. 18-31] II. MACCABEES 465
Others ran flocking out of their houses to the general
supphcation, because the place was Uke to come into
contempt. And the women, girt with sackcloth under
their breasts, abounded in the streets, and the virgins
that were kept in ran, some to the gates, and some to
the walls, and others looked out of the windows. And
;,11, holding their hands toward heaven, made supplica-
tion. Then it would have pitied a man to see the falling
down of the multitude of all sorts, and the fear of the
high priest, being in such an agony. They then called
upon the Almighty Lord to keep the things committed
of trust safe and^ sure for those that had committed
them.
Nevertheless Heliodorus executed that which was
decreed. Now as he was there present himself with
his guard about the treasury, the Lord of spirits, and
the Prince of all power, caused a great apparition, so
that all that presumed to come in with him were aston-
ished at the power of God, and fainted, and were sore
afraid. For there appeared unto them an horse with a
terrible rider upon him, and adorned with a very fair
covering, and he ran fiercely, and smote at Heliodorus
with his forefeet, and it seemed that he that sat upon
the horse had complete armour of gold. Moreover two
other young men appeared before him, notable in
strength, excellent in beauty, and comely in apparel, who
stood by him on either side, and scourged him continu-
ally, and gave him many sore stripes. And Heliodorus
fell suddenly unto the ground, and was compassed with
great darkness : but they that were with him took him
up, and put him into a litter. Thus him, that lately came
with a great train and with all his guard into the said
treasury, they carried out, being unable to help himself
with his weapons : and manifestly they acknowledged
the power of God : for he by the hand of God was cast
down, and lay speechless without all hope of life. But
they praised the Lord, that had miraculously honoured
His own place : for the temple, which a little afore was
full of fear and trouble, when the Almighty Lord
appeared, was filled with joy and gladness.
Then straightway certain of Heliodorus' friends
prayed Onias, that he would call upon the Most High
466 11. MACCABEES [iii. 32— iv. 6
to grant him his life, who lay ready to give up the ghost.
So the high priest, suspecting lest the king should mis-
•co-nceive that some treachery had been done to Helio-
<3orus by the Jews, offered a sacrifice for the health of
the man. Now as the high priest was making an atone-
ment, the same 3^oung men in the same clothing ap-
peared and stood beside Heliodorus, saying: — "Give
Onias the high priest great thanks, insomuch as for his
sake the Lord hath granted thee life : and seeing that
thou hast been scourged from heaven, declare unto all
men the mighty power of God. ' '
And when they had spoken these words, they appeared
no more. So Heliodorus, after he had offered sacrifice
tmto the Lord, and made great vows unto Him that had
saved his life, and saluted Onias, returned with his host
to the king. Then testified he to all men the works of the
great God, which he had seen with his eyes. And when
the king asked Heliodorus, who might be a fit man to
be sent yet once again to Jerusalem, he said : — " If thou
hast any enemy or traitor, send him thither, and thou
shalt receive him well scourged, if he escape with his
life : for in that place, no doubt, there is an especial
power of God. For He that dwelleth in heaven hath His
eye on that place, and defendeth it ; and He beateth and
destroyeth them that come to hurt it."
And the things concerning Heliodorus, and the keep-
ing of the treasury, fell out on this sort. This Simon
now, of whom we spake afore, having been a bewrayer
of the money, and of his country, slandered Onias, as if
he had terrified Heliodorus, and been the worker of
• these evils. Thus was he bold to call him a traitor, that
had deserved well of the city, and tendered his own
nation, and was so zealous of the laws. But when their
hatred went so far, that by one of Simon's faction mur-
ders were committed, Onias seeing the danger of this
contention, and that Apollonius, as being the governor
of Coelosyria and Phenicia, did rage, and increase
Simon's malice, he went to the king, not to be an
accuser of his countrymen, but seeking the good of all,
both public and private : for he saw that it was impos-
sible that the state should continue quiet, and Simon
leave his folly, unless the king did look thereunto.
iv. 7-19] 11. MACCABEES 467
But after the death of Seleucus, when Antiochus, called
Epiphanes, took the kingdom, Jason the brother^ of
Onias laboured underhand to be high priest, promising
unto the king by intercession three hundred and three-
score talents of silver, and of another revenue eighty
talents : beside this, he promised to assign an hundred
and fifty more, if he might have licence to set him up
a place of exercise, and for the training up of youth in
the fashions of the heathen, and to write them of Jeru-
salem by the name of Antiochians. Which when the
king had granted, and he had gotten into his hand the
rule, he forthwith brought his own nation to the Greek-
ish fashion. And the royal privileges granted of special
favour to the Jews by the micans of John the father of
Eupolemus, who went ambassador to Rome for amity
and aid, he took away ; and putting down the govern-
ments which were according to the law, he brought up
new customs ag-ainst the law : for he built gladly a place
of exercise under the citadel itself, and brought the chief
young men under his subjection, and made them wear
a hat.
Now such was the height of Greek fashions, and in-
crease of heathenish manners, through the exceeding
profaneness of Jason, that ungodly wretch, and no high
priest, that the priests had no zeal to serve any more
at the altar, but despising the temple, and neglecting
the sacrifices, hastened to enjoy that which was unlaw-
fully provided in the palaestra, after the summons to the
game of the discus ; not setting by the honours of their
fathers, but liking the glory of the Greeks best of all.
By reason whereof sore calamity came upon them : for
they had them to be their enemies and avengers, whose
custom they followed so earnestly, and unto whom they
desired to be like in all things. For it is not a light
thing to do wickedly against the laws of God : but the
time following shall declare these things.
Now when the game that was used every fifth year
was kept at Tyre, the king being present, this ungra-
cious Jason sent special messengers from Jerusalem, who
were Antiochians, to carry three hundred drachms of
silver to the sacrifice of Hercules, which even the bearers
thereof thought fit not to bestow upon the sacrifice, be-
468 11. MACCABEES [iv. 20-33
cause it was not convenient, but to be reserved for other
charges. This money then, in regard of the sender, was
appointed to Hercules' sacrifice; but because of the
bearers thereof, it was employed to the making of
triremes.
Now when Apollonius the son of IMenestheus was sent
into Egypt for the coronation of king Ptolemy Philo-
metor, Antiochus, understanding him not to be well
affected to his affairs, provided for his own safety :
whereupon he came to Joppa, and from thence to Jeru-
salem : where he was honourably received of Jason, and
of the city, and was brought in with torch light, and
with great shoutings : and so afterward went with his
host unto Phenicia. Three years afterward Jason sent
Menelaus, the aforesaid Simon's brother, to bear the
money unto the king, and to put him in mind of certain
necessary matters. But he being brought to the pre-
sence of the king, when he had magnified him for the
glorious appearance of his power, got the priesthood to
himself, offering more than Jason by three hundred
talents of silver. So he came with the king's mandate,
bringing nothing worthy the high priesthood, but
having the fury of a cruel tyrant, and the rage of a
savage beast. Then Jason, who had undermined his
own brother, being undermined by another, was com-
pelled to flee into the country of the Ammonites. So
IMenelaus got the principality : but as for the money that
he had promised unto the king, he took no good order
for it, albeit Sostratus the ruler of the castle required it :
for unto him appertained the gathering of the customs.
Wherefore they were both called before the king. Now
Menelaus left his brother Lysimachus in his stead in the
priesthood ; and Sostratus left Crates, who was governor
of the Cyprians. While those things were in doing, thev
of Tarsus and Mallus made insurrection, because thev
were given to the king's concubine, called Antiochis.
Then came the king in all haste to appease matters,
leaving Andronicus, a man in authority, for his deputv.
Now Menelaus, supposing that he had gotten a con-
venient time, stole certain vessels of gold out of the
temple, and gave some of them to Andronicus, and some
he sold into Tyre and the cities round about. \\'hich
iv. 34-43] II. MACCABEES 469
when Onias knew of a surety, he reproved him, and with-
drew himself into a sanctuary at Daphne, that Ueth by
Antioch. Wherefore Menelaus, taking Andronicus
apart, prayed him to g-et Onias into his hands; who
being persuaded thereunto, and coming to Onias in
deceit, gave him his right hand with oaths ; and though
he were suspected by him, yet persuaded he him to come
forth of the sanctuary : whom forthwith he shut up with-
out regard of justice. For the which cause not only the
Jews, but many also of other nations, took great indig-
nation, and were much grieved for the unjust murder
of the man. And when the king was come again from
the places about Cilicia, the Jews that were in the city,
and certain of the Greeks that abhorred the fact also,
complained because Onias was slain without cause.
Therefore Antiochus was heartily sorry, and moved to
pity, and wept, because of the sober and modest be-
haviour of him that was dead. And being kindled v.ith
anger, forthwith he took away Andronicus' purple,
and rent off his clothes, and leading him through the
whole city unto that very place, where he had committed
impiety against Onias, there slew he the cursed mur-
derer. Thus the Lord rewarded him his punishment, as
he had deserved.
Now vv-hen many sacrileges had been com.mitted in the
city by Lysimachus with the consent of Menelaus, and
the bruit thereof was spread abroad, the multitude
gathered themselves together against Lysimachus, many
vessels of gold being already carried away. Whereupon
the comm.on people rising, and being filled with rage,
Lysimachus armed about three thousand men, and began
first to offer violence; one Auranus being the leader, a
man far gone in years, and no less in folly. They then
seeing the attempt of Lysimachus, some of them caught
stones, some clubs, others taking handfuls of dust, that
was next at hand, cast them all together upon Lysima-
chus, and those that set upon them. Thus many of them
they wounded, and some they struck to the ground, and
all of them they forced to flee : but as for the church-
robber himself, him they killed beside the treasury. Of
these matters therefore there was an accusation laid
agfainst Menelaus.
470 II. MACCABEES [iv. 44— v. 7
Now when the king- came to Tyre, three men that were
sent from the senate pleaded the cause before him : but
Menelaus, being now convicted, promised Ptolemy the
son of Dorymenes to give him much money, if he would
pacify the king toward him. Whereupon Ptolemy taking
the king aside into a certain gallery, as it were to take
the air, brought him to be of another mind : insomuch
that he discharged Menelaus from the accusations, who
notwithstanding was cause of all the mischief : and
those poor men, who, if they had told their cause, yea,
before the Scythians, should have been judged innocent,
them he condemned to death. Thus they that followed
the matter for the city, and for the people, and for the
holj vessels, did soon suffer unjust punishment. Where-
fore even they of Tyre, moved with hatred of that
wicked deed, caused them to be honourably buried. And
so through the covetousness of them that v^ere of power
Menelaus remained still in authority, increasing in
malice, and being a great traitor to the citizens.
About the same time Antiochus prepared his second
voyage into Egypt : and then it happened, that through
all the city, for the space almost of forty days, there
were seen horsemen running in the air, in cloth of gold,
and armed with lances, like a band of soldiers, and
troops of horsemen in array, encountering and running
one against another, with shaking of shields, and multi-
tude of pikes, and drawing of swords, and casting of
darts, and glittering of golden ornaments, and armour
of all sorts. Wherefore every man prayed that that
apparition might turn to good.
Now when there was gone forth a false rumour, as
though Antiochus had been dead, Jason took at the
least a thousand men, and suddenly made an assault
upon the city ; and they that were upon the walls being
put back, and the city at length taken, Menelaus fled
into the castle : but Jason slew his own citizens without
mercy, not considering that to get the day of them of
his own nation would be a most unhappy day for him ;
but thinking they had been his enemies, and not his
countrymen, whom he conquered. Howbeit for all this
he obtained not the principality, but at the last received
shame for the reward of his treason, and fled again into
V. 8-20] II. MACCABEES 47 1
the country of the Ammonites. In the end therefore he
had an unhappy return, being accused before Aretas the
king of the Arabians, fleeing from city to city, pursued
of all men, hated as a forsaker of the laws, and being
had in abomination as an open enemy of his country and
countrymen, he was cast out into Egypt. Thus he that
had driven many out of their country perished in a
strange land, retiring to the Spartans, and thinking
there to find succour by reason of his kindred : and he
that had cast out many unburied had none to mourn for
him, nor any solemn funerals at all, nor sepulchre with
his fathers.
Now when this that was done came to the king's ear^
he thought that Judaea had revolted : whereupon re-
moving out of Egypt in a furious mind, he took the
city by force of arms, and commanded his men of war
not to' spare such as they miet, and to slay such as went
up upon the houses. Thus there was killing of young
and old, making away of men, women, and children^
slaying of virgins and infants. And there were de-
stroyed within the space of three whole days fourscore
thousand, whereof forty thousand were slain in the con-
flict ; and no fewer sold than slain. Yet was he not
content with this, but presumed to go into the most holy
temple of all the world, IMenelaus, that traitor to the
laws, and to his own country, being his guide : and
taking the holy vessels with polluted hands, and with
profane hands pulling down the things that were dedi-
cated by other kings to the augmentation and glory and
honour of the place, he gave them away. And so
haughty was A.ntiochus in mind, that he considered not
that the Lord was angry for a while for the sins of them
that dwelt in the city, and therefore His eye was not
upon the place. For had they not been formerly wrapped
in many sins, this man, as soon as he had come, had
forthwith been scourged, and put back from his pre-
sumption, as Heliodorus was, whom Seleucus the king
sent to view the treasury. Nevertheless God did not
choose the people for the place's sake, but the place for
the people's sake. And therefore the place itself, that
was partaker with them of the adversity that happened
to the nation, did afterward communicate in the benefits
472 II. MACCABEES [v. 21— vi. 6
sent from the Lord : and as it was forsaken in the wrath
of the Almighty, so again, the great Lord being recon-
ciled, it was set up with all glory.
So when Antiochus had carried out of the temple a
thousand and eight hundred talents, he departed in all
haste unto Antiochia, weening in his pride to make the
land navigable, and the sea passable by foot : such was
the haughtiness of his mind. And he left governors to
vex the nation : at Jerusalem, Philip, for his country a
Phrygian, and for manners more barbarous than he that
set him there; and at Gerizim, Andronicus ; and besides,
Menelaus, who worse than all the rest bare an heavy
hand over the citizens, having a malicious mind against
his countrymen the Jews. He sent also that detestable
ringleader Apollonius with an army of two and twenty
thousand, commanding him to slay all those that were
in their best age, and to sell the women and the younger
sort : who coming to Jerusalem, and pretending peace,
did forbear till the holy day of the sabbath, when taking
the Jews keeping holy day, he commanded his men to
arm themselves. And so he slew all them that were
gone to the celebrating of the sabbath, and running
through the city with weapons slew great multitudes.
But Judas Maccabaeus with nine others, or thereabout,
withdrew himself into the wilderness, and lived in the
mountains after the manner of beasts, with his company,
who fed on herbs continually, lest they should be par-
takers of the pollution.
Not long after this the king sent an old man of Athens
to compel the Jews to depart from the laws of their
fathers, and not to live after the laws of God : and to
pollute also the temple in Jerusalem, and to calHt the
temple of Jupiter Olympius ; and that in Gerizim, of
Jupiter the Defender of strangers, as they did desire that
dwelt in the place. The coming in of this mischief was
sore and grievous to the people : for the temple was filled
with riot and revelling by the Gentiles, who dallied with
harlots, and had to do with women within the circuit of
the holy places, and besides that brought in things that
were not lawful. The altar also was filled with profane
things, which the law forbiddeth. Neither was it lawful
for a man to keep sabbath days or ancient feasts, or to
vi. 7-20] II. MACCABEES 473
profess himself at all to be a Jew. And in the day of the
king's birth every month they were brought by bitter
constraint to eat 'of the sacrifices; and when the feast
of Bacchus was kept, the Jews were compelled to go m
procession to Bacchus, carrying ivy. Moreover there
went out a decree to the neighbour cities _ of the
heathen, bv the suggestion of Ptolemy, against the
Jews, that 'they should observe the same fashions, and
be partakers of their sacrifices : and whoso would not
conform themselves to the manners of the Gentiles
should be put to death. Then might a man have seen
the present misery. For there were two women brought,
who had circumcised their children ; whom when they
had openly led round about the city, the babes hanging
at their breasts, they cast them down headlong from the
wall. And others, that had run together into caves
near by, to keep the sabbath day secretly, being dis-
covered to Philip, were all burnt together, because they
made a conscience to help themselves for the honour of
the most sacred day.
Now I beseech those that read this book, that they
be not discouraged for these calamities, but that they
judge those punishments not to be for destruction, but
for "a chastening of our nation. For it is a token of His
great goodness, when wicked doers are not suffered any
long time, but forthwith punished. For not as with
other nations whom the Lord patiently forbeareth to
punish, till they be come to the fulness of their sins, so
dealeth He with us, lest that, being come to the height
of sin, afterwards He should take vengeance of us.
And therefore He never withdraweth His mercy from
us : and though He punish with adversity, yet doth He
never forsake His people. But let this that we have
spoken be for a warning unto us. And now will we come
to the declaring of the matter in few words.
Eleazar, one of the principal scribes, an aged man,
and of a well favoured countenance, was constrained
to open his mouth, and to eat swine's flesh. But he,
choosing rather to die gloriously, than to live stained
with such an abomination, spit it forth, and came of his
own accord to the torment, as it behoved them to come,
that are resolute to stand out against such things, as
474 n. MACCABEES [vi. 21— vii. i
are not lawful for love of life to be tasted. But they
that had the charge of that wicked feast, for the old
acquaintance they had with the man, taking him aside,
besought him to bring flesh of his own provision,^ such
as was lawful for him to use, and make as if he did eat
of the flesh taken from the sacrifice commanded by the
king ; that in so doing he might be delivered from death,
and for the old friendship with them find favour.
But he began to consider discreetly, and as became
his age, and "the excellency of his ancient years, and the
honour of his gray head, whereunto he was come, and
his most honest education from a child, or rather the
holy law made and given by God : therefore he answered
accordingly, and willed them straightway to send him
to the grave. " For it becometh not our age," said he,
" in any wise to dissemble, whereby many young per-
sons might think that Eleazar, being fourscore years
old and ten, were now gone to a strange religion ; and
so they through mine hypocrisy, and desire to live a little
time and a moment longer, should be deceived by me,
and I get a stain to mine old age, and make it abomin-
able. For though for the present time I should be de-
livered from the punishment of men : yet should I not
escape the hand of the Almighty, neither alive, nor dead.
Wherefore now, manfully changing this life, I will shew
myself such an one as mine age requireth, and leave a
notable example to such as be young to die willingly and
courageously for the honourable and holy laws." And
when he had said these words, immediately he went to
the torment : they that led him changing the good will
they bare him a little before into hatred, because the
foresaid speeches proceeded, as they thought, from a
desperate mind. But when he was ready to die with
stripes, he groaned, and said: — "It is manifest unto
the Lord, that hath the holy knowledge, that whereas 1
might have been delivered from death, I now endure
sore pains in body by being beaten : but in soul am well
content to suffer these things, because I fear Him."
And thus this man died, leaving his death for an example
of a noble courage, and a memorial of virtue, not only
unto young men, but unto all his nation.
It came to pass also, that seven brethren with their
vii. 2-14] II. MACCABEES 475
mother were taken, and compelled by the king against
the law to taste swine's flesh, and were tormented with
scourges and whips. But one of them that spake first
said thus : — " What wouldest thou ask or learn of us?
we are ready to die, rather than to transgress the laws
of our fathers." Then the king, being in a rage, com-
manded pans and caldrons to be made hot : which forth-
with being heated, he commanded to cut out the tongue
of him that spake first, and to cut off the utmost parts
of his body, the rest of his brethren and his mother
looking on. Now when he was thus maimed in all his
members, he commanded him being yet alive to be
brought to the fire, and to be fried in the pan : and as
the vapour of the pan was for a good space dispersed,
they exhorted one another with the mother to die man-
fully, saying thus : — " The Lord God looketh upon us,
and in truth hath comfort in us, as Moses in his song,
which witnessed to their faces, declared, saying. And
He shall be comforted in His servants."
So when the first was dead after this manner, they
brought the second to make him a mocking stock : and
when they had pulled off the skin of his head with the
hair, they asked him : — " Wilt thou eat, before thou be
punished throughout every member of thy body?" But
he answered in his own language, and said: — " No."
Wherefore he also received the next torment in order,
as the former did. And when he was at the last gasp,
he said : — " Thou like a fury takest us out of this present
life, but the King of the world shall raise us up, who
have died for His laws, unto everlasting life." After
him was the third made a mocking stock : and when he
was required, he put out his tongue, and that right soon,
holding forth his hands manfully, and said courage-
ously : — " These I had from heaven; and for His laws
I despise them ; and from Him I hope to receive them
again." Insomuch that the king, and they that were
with him, marvelled at the young man's courage, for
that he nothing regarded the pains.
Now when this man was dead also, they tormented
and mangled the fourth in like manner. So when he
was ready to die he said thus : — " It is good, being put
to death by men, to look for hope from God to be raised
476 II. MACCABEES [vii. 15-27
up again by Him : as for thee, thou shalt have no resur-
rection to Hfe." Afterward they brought the fifth also,
and mangled him. Then looked he unto the king, and
said : — " Thou hast power over men, thou art corrupt-
ible, thou doest what thou wilt ; yet think not that our
nation is forsaken of God ; but abide a while, and behold
His great power, how He will torment thee and thy
seed." After him also they brought the sixth, who
being ready to die said : — " Be not deceived without
cause : for we suffer these things for ourselves, haying
sinned against our God : therefore marvellous things
are done unto us. But think not thou, that takest in
hand to strive against God, that thou shalt escape
unpunished."
But the mother was marvellous above all, and worthy
of honourable memory : for when she saw her seven
sons slain within the space of one day, she bare it with
a good courage, because of the hope that she had in the
Lord. Yea, she exhorted every one of them in her own
language, filled with courageous spirits ; and stirring
up her womanish thoughts with manly passion, she
said unto them : — " I cannot tell how ye came into my
womb ; for I neither gave you breath nor life, neither
was it I that formed the members of every one of you ;
but doubtless the Creator of the world, who formed the
generation of man, and found out the beginning of all
things, will also of His own mercy give you breath and
life again, as ye now regard not your own selves for
His laws' sake."
Now Antiochus, thinking himself despised, and sus-
pecting it to be a reproachful speech, whilst the young-
est was yet alive, did not only exhort him by words, but
also assured him with oaths, that he would make him
both a rich and a happy man, if he would turn from the
laws of his fathers ; and that also he would take him for
his friend, and trust him with affairs. But when the
young man would in no case hearken unto him, the king
called his mother, and exhorted her that she would
counsel the young man to save his life. And when he
had exhorted her with many words, she promised him
that she would counsel her son. But she bowing herself
toward him, laughing the cruel tyrant to scorn, spake
vii. 28— viii. I] II. MACCABEES 477
in her country language on this manner : — " O my son,
have pity upon me that bare thee nine months in my
womb, and gave thee suck three years, and nourished
thee, and brought thee up unto this age, and endured the
troubles of education. I beseech thee, my son, lopk
upon the heaven and the earth, and all that is therein,
and consider that God made them of things that were
not ; and so was mankind made likewise. Fear not this
tormentor, but, being worthy of thy brethren, take thy
death, that I may receive thee again in mercy with thy-
brethren. "
Whiles she was yet speaking these words, the
voung man said: — " W'hom wait ye for? I will not
obey the king's commandment : but I will obey the com-
mandment of the law that was given unto our fathers
by Moses. And thou, that hast been the author of all
mischief against the Hebrews, shalt not escape the hands
of God. For we suffer because of our sins. And though
the living Lord be angry with us a little while for our
chastening and correction, yet shall He be at one again
with His servants. But thou, O godless man, and of all
other most wicked, be not lifted up without a cause, nor
puffed up with uncertain hopes, lifting up thy hand
against the servants of God : for thou hast not yet escaped
the judgment of Almighty God, who seeth all things.
For our brethren, who now have suffered a short pain,
are dead under God's covenant of everlasting life : but
thou, through the judgment of God, shalt receive just
punishment for thy pride. But I, as my brethren, offer
up my body and life for the laws of our fathers, beseech-
ing God that He would speedily be merciful unto our
nation ; and that thou by torments and plagues m.ayest
confess, that He alone is God ; and that in me and my
brethren the wrath of the Almighty, which is justly
brought upon all our nation, m.ay cease." Then the
king, being in a rage, handled him worse than all the
rest, and took it grievously that he was mocked. So
this man died undefiled, and put his whole trust in the
Lord. Last of all after the sons the mother died. Let
this be enough now to have spoken concerning the
idolatrous feasts, and the extreme tortures.
Then Judas Maccabeeus, and they that were with him,
478 II. MACCABEES [viii. 2-13
went privily into the towns, and called their kinsfolk
together, and took unto them all such as continued in
the Jews' religion, and assembled about six thousand
men. And they called upon the Lord, that He would
look upon the people that was trodden down of all ; and
also pity the temple profaned of ungodly men ; and that
He would have compassion upon the city, sore defaced,
and ready to be made even with the ground ; and hear
the blood that cried unto Him, and remember the wicked
slaughter of harmless infants, and the blasphemies com-
mitted against His name ; and that He would shew His
hatred against the wicked. Now when Maccabsus had
his company about him, he could not be withstood by
the heathen : for the wrath of the Lord was turned into
mercy. Therefore he came at unawares, and burnt up
towns and cities, and got into his hands the most com-
modious places, and overcame and put to flight no small
number of his enemies. But specially took he advantage
of the night for such privy attempts, insomuch that the
bruit of his manliness was spread every where.
So when Philip saw that this man increased by little
and little, and that things prospered with him still more
and more, he wrote unto Ptolemy, the governor of Coelo-
syria and Phenicia, to yield more aid to the king's
affairs. Then forthwith choosing Nicanor the son of
Patroclus, one of his special friends, he sent him with
no fewer than twenty thousand of all nations under him,
to root out the whole generation of the Jews ; and with
him he joined also Gorgias a captain, who in matters
of war had great experience. So Nicanor undertook to
make so much money of the captive Jews, as should
defray the tribute of two thousand talents, which the
king was to pay to the Romans. Wherefore immediately
he sent to the cities upon the sea coast, proclaiming a
sale of the captive Jews, and promising that they should
have fourscore and ten bodies for one talent, not ex-
pecting the vengeance that was to follow upon him from
the Almighty God.
Now when word was brought unto Judas of Nicanor 's
coming, and he had imparted unto those that were with
him that the army was at hand, they that were fearful,
and distrusted the justice of God, fled, and conveyed
viii. 14-25] 11. MACCABEES 479
themselves away. Others sold all that they had
left, and withal besought the Lord to deliver them,
being- sold by the wicked Nicanor before they met
together : and if not for their own sakes, yet for the
covenants He had made with their fathers, and for
His holy and glorious name's sake, by which they were
called.
So IVIaccabasus called his men together unto the num-
ber of six thousand, and exhorted them not to be stricken
with terror of the enemy, nor to fear the great multitude
of the heathen, who came wrongfully against them; but
to fight manfully, and to set before their eyes the injury
that they had unjustly done to the holy place, and the
cruel handling of the city, whereof they made a mockery,
and also the taking away of the government of their
forefathers: " P^or they," said he, "trust in their
weapons and boldness ; but our confidence is in the
Almighty God, who at a beck can cast down both them
that come against us, and also all the world. " Moreover
he recounted unto them what helps their forefathers
had found, and how they were delivered, when under
Sennacherib an hundred fourscore and five thousand
perished. And he told them of the battle that they had
in Babylon with the Galatians, how they came but eight
thousand in all to the business, with four thousand
Macedonians, and that the Macedonians being per-
plexed, the eight thousand destroyed an hundred and
twenty thousand because of the help that they had from
heaven, and so received a great booty.
Thus when he had made them bold with these words,
and ready to die for the laws and the country, he divided
his army into four parts ; and joined with himself his
own brethren, leaders of each band, to wit, Simon, and
Joseph, and Jonathan, giving each one fifteen hundred
men. Also he appointed Eleazar to read the holy book :
and when he had given them this watchword, " The help
of God " ; himself leading the first band, he joined battle
v/ith Nicanor. And by the help of the Almighty they
slew above nine thousand of their enemies, and wounded
and maimed the most part of Nicanor's host, and so put
all to flight ; and took their money that came to buy
them, and pursued them far : but lacking time they
480 II. MACCABEES [viii. 26— ix. 2
returned : for it was the day before the sabbath, and
therefore they would no longer pursue them.
So when they had gathered their armour together, and
spoiled their enemies, they occupied themselves about
the sabbath, yielding exceeding praise and thanks to the
Lord, who had preserved them unto that day, which
was the beginning of mercy distilling upon them. And
after the sabbath, when they had given part of the spoils
to the maimed, and the widows, and orphans, the residue
they divided among themselves and their servants.
When this was done, and they had made a common sup-
plication, they besought the micrciful Lord to be recon-
ciled with His servants for ever. Moreover of those
that were with Timotheus and Bacchides, who fought
against them, they slew above twenty thousand, and
very easily got high and strong holds, and divided
among themselves many spoils more, and made the
maimed, orphans, widows, yea, and the aged also, equal
in spoils with themselves. And when they had gathered
their armour together, they laid them up all carefully in
convenient places, and the remnant of the spoils they
brought to Jerusalem. They slew also Philarches, that
wicked person, who was with Timotheus, and had an-
noyed the Jews many ways. Furthermore at such time
as they kept the feast for the victory in their country
they burnt Callisthenes, that had set fire upon the holy
gates, who had fled into a little house; and so he re-
ceived a reward meet for his wickedness. As for that
most ungracious Nicanor, who had brought a thousand
merchants to buy the Jews, he was through the help of
the Lord brought down by them, of whom he made
least account ; and putting off his glorious apparel, and
discharging his company, he came like a fugitive servant
through the midland unto Antioch, having very great
dishonour, for that his host was destroyed. Thus he,
that took upon him to make good to the Romans their
tribute by means of the captives in Jerusalem, told
abroad, that the Jews had God to fight for them, and
therefore they could not be hurt, because they followed
the laws that He gave them.
About that time came Antiochus with dishonour out of
the country of Persia. For he had entered the city called
ix. 3-12] 11. MACCABEES 481
Persepolis, and went about to rob the temple, and to
hold the city ; whereupon the multitude running to de-
fend themselves with their weapons put them to flight;
and so it happened, that Antiochus being put to flight
of the inhabitants returned with shame. Now when he
came to Ecbatana, news was brought him what had
happened unto Nicanor and Timotheus. Then swelling
with anger, he thought to avenge upon the Jews the
disgrace done unto him by those that made him flee.
Therefore commanded he his chariotman to drive with-
out ceasing, and to dispatch the journey, the judgment
of God now following him. For he had spoken proudly
in this sort. That he would come to Jerusalem, and make
it a common buryingplace of the Jews. But the Lord
Almighty, the God of Israel, smote him with an incurable
and invisible plague : for as soon as he had spoken these
words, a pain of the bowels that was remediless came
upon him, and sore torments of the inner parts ; and that
most justly : for he had tormented other men's bowels
with many and strange torments. Howbeit he nothing
at all ceased from his bragging, but still was filled with
pride, breathing out fire in his rage against the Jews,
and commanding to haste the journey : but it came to
pass that he fell down from his chariot, carried vio-
lently ; so that having a sore fall, all the members of his
body were much pained. And thus he that a little afore
thought he might command the waves of the sea, (so
proud was he beyond the condition of man,) and weigh
the high mountains in a balance, was how cast on the
ground, and carried in an horselitter, shewing forth unto
all the manifest power of God. So that the worms rose
up out of the body of this wicked man, and whiles he
lived in sorrow and pain, his flesh fell away, and the
filthiness of his smell was noisome to all his army. And
the man, that thought a little afore he could reach to
the stars of heaven, no man could endure to carry for
his intolerable stink. Here therefore, being plagued,
he began to leave off his great pride, and to come to the
knowledge of himself by the scourge of God, his pain
increasing every moment. And when he himself could
not abide his own smell, he said these words : — " It is
meet to be subject unto God, and that a man that is
VOL. II. R
482 II. MACCABEES [ix. 13-25
mortal should not proudly think of himself, as if he were
God."
This wicked person vowed also unto the Lord, who
now no more would have mercy upon him, saying thus,
that the holy city (to the which he was going in haste,
to lay it even with the ground, and to make it a common
buryingplace,) he would set at liberty : and as touching
the Jews, whom he had judged not worthy so much as
to be buried, but to be cast out with their children to be
devoured of the fowls and wild beasts, he would make
them all equal to the citizens of Athens : and the holy
temple, which before he had spoiled, he would garnish
with goodly gifts, and restore all the holy vessels with
many more, and out of his own revenue defray the
charges belonging to the sacrifices : yea, and that also
he would become a Jew himself, and go through all the
world that was inhabited, and declare the power of God.
But for all this his pains would not cease : for the just
judgment of God was come upon him : therefore despair-
ing of his health, he wrote unto the Jews the letter under-
written, containing the form of a supplication, after this
manner : —
" Antiochus, king and governor, to the good Jews his
citizens wisheth much joy, health, and prosperity : If
ye and your children fare well, and your affairs be to
your contentment, I give very great thanks to God,
having my hope in heaven. As for me, I was weak, or
else I would have remembered kindly your honour and
good will. Returning out of Persia, and being taken
with a grievous disease, I thought it necessary to care
for the common safety of all : not distrusting mine
health, but having great hope to escape this sickness.
But considering that even my father, at what time he
led an army into the high countries, appointed a suc-
cessor, to the end that, if any thing fell out contrary to
expectation, or if any tidings were brought that were
grievous, they of the land, knowing to whom the state
was left, might not be troubled : again, considering how
that the princes that are borderers and neighbours unto
my kingdom wait for opportunities, and expect what
shall be the event, I have appointed my son Antiochus
king, whom I often committed and commended unto
ix. 26— X. 10] II. MACCABEES 4^3
many of j-ou, when I went up into the high provinces ;
to whom I have written what is written below : therefore
I pray and request you to remember the benefits that I
have done unto you generally, and in special, and that
every man will be still faithful to me and my son. For
I am persuaded that he understanding my mind will
favourably and graciously yield to your desires." Thus
the murderer and blasphemer having suffered most
grievously, as he intreated other men, so died he a
miserable death in a strange country in the mountains.
And Philip, that was brought up with him, carried away
his body, who also fearing the son of Antiochus went
into Egypt to Ptolemy Philometor.
Now Maccaba^us and his company, the Lord guiding
them, recovered the temple and the city ; but the altars
which the heathen had built in the open street, and also
the chapels, they pulled down. And having cleansed
the temple they made another altar, and striking stones
they took fire out of them, and offered a sacrifice after
two years, and set forth incense, and lights, and shew-
bread. When that was done, they fell flat down,
and besought the Lord that they might come no more
into such troubles ; but if they sinned any more against
Him, that He Himself would chasten them wath mercy,
and that they might not be delivered unto the blasphem-
ous and barbarous nations. Now upon the same day
that the strangers profaned the temple, on the very same
day it was cleansed again, even the five and twentieth
day of the same month, which is Chislev. And they kept
eight days with gladness, as in the feast of the taber-
nacles, remembering that not long afore they had held
the feast of the tabernacles, when as they wandered in
the mountains and dens like beasts. Therefore they bare
branches, and fair boughs, and palms also, and sang
psalms unto Him that had given them good success in
cleansing His place. They ordained also by a common
statute and decree, that every year those days should
be kept of the whole nation of the Jews. And this was
the end of Antiochus, called Epiphanes.
Now will we declare the acts of Antiochus Eupator,
who was the son of this wicked man, gathering briefly
the calamities of the wars.
484 II. MACCABEES L^- 11-23 I
So when he was come to the crown, he set one Lysias
over the affairs of his realm, and appointed him chief
governor of Coelosyria and Phenicia. For Ptolemy, that
was called Macron, choosing rather to do justice unto
the Jews for the wrong that had been done unto them,
endeavoured to continue peace with them. Whereupon
being accused of the king's friends before Eupator, and
called traitor at every word, because he had left Cyprus,
that Philometor had committed unto him, and departed
to Antiochus Epiphanes, and seeing that he was in no
honourable place, he was so discouraged, that he
poisoned himself and died. But when Gorgias was
governor of the holds, he hired soldiers, and nourished
war continually with the Jews : and therewithal the Idu-
maeans, having gotten into their hands the most com-
modious holds, kept the Jews occupied, and receiving
those that were banished from Jerusalem, they went
about to nourish war. Then they that were with Macca-
baeus made supplication, and besought God that He
would be their helper ; and so they ran with violence
upon the strong holds of the Iduma^ans, and assaulting
them strongly, they won the holds, and kept off all that
fought upon the wall, and slew all that fell into their
hands, and killed no fewer than twenty thousand. And
because certain, who were no less than nine thousand,
were fled together into two very strong castles, having
all manner of things convenrent to sustain the siege,
Maccabaeus left Simon and Joseph, and Zacchseus also,
and them that were with him, who were enough to
besiege them, and departed himself unto those places
which more needed his help. Now they that were with
Simon, being led with covetousness, were persuaded
for money through certain of those that were in the
castle, and took seventy thousand drachms, and let
some of them escape. But when it was told Maccabaeus
what was done, he called the governors of the people
together, and accused those men, that they had sold
their brethren for money, and set their enemies free to
fight against them. So he slew those that were found
traitors, and immediately took the two castles. And
having good success with his weapons in all things he
took in hand, he slew in the two holds more than twenty
thousand.
X. 24-36] n. MACCABEES 485
Now Timotheus, whom the Jews had overcome before,
when he had gathered a great multitude of foreign
forces, and horses out of Asia not a few, came as though
he would take Judaea by force of arms. But when he
(hew near, they that were with Maccabseus turned them-
selves to pray unto God, and sprinkled earth upon their
heads, and girded their loins with sackcloth, and fell
down at the foot of the altar, and besought Him to_ be
merciful to them, and to be an enemy to their enemies,
and an adversary to their adversaries, as the law de-
clareth. So after the prayer they took their weapons,
and went on further from the city : and when they drew
near to their enemies, they kept by themselves. Now
the sun being newly risen, they joined both together;
the one part having together with their virtue their
refuge also unto the Lord for a pledge of their success
and victory : the other side making their rage leader of
their battle. But when the battle waxed strong, there
appeared unto the enemies from heaven five comely men
upon horses, with bridles of gold, and two of them led
the Jews, and took Maccabaeus betwixt them, and
covered him on every side with their weapons, and kept
him safe, but shot arrows and lightnings _ against the
enemies : so that being confounded with blindness, and
full of trouble, they were killed. And there were slain
of footmen twenty thousand and five hundred, and
six hundred horsemen.
As for Timotheus himself, he fled into a very strong
hold, called Gazara, where Chsereas was governor. But
they .that were with Maccabaeus laid siege against the
fortress courageously four days. And they that were
within, trusting to the strength of the place, blasphemed
exceedingly, and uttered wicked words. Nevertheless
upon the fifth day early, twenty young men of Macca-
baeus' company, inflamed with anger because of the
blasphemies, assaulted the wall, with masculine force,
and with passion as of wild beasts, and cut down whoso-
ever came in their way. Others likewise ascending after
them, whiles they were busied with them that were
within, burnt the towers, and kindling fires burnt the
blasphemers alive; and others broke open the gates,
and, having received in the rest of the army, took the
486 II. MACCABEES [x. 37— xi. 13
city, and killed Timotheus, that was hid in a certain pit,
and Chasreas his brother, with Apollophanes. When
this was done, they praised the Lord with psalms and
thanksg-iving", who had done so great things for Israel,
and given them the victory.
Not long after this, Lysias the king's protector and
cousin, who also managed the affairs, took sore dis-
pleasure for the things that were done. And when he
had gathered about fourscore thousand with all the
horsemen, he came against the Jews, thinking to make
the city an habitation of the Gentiles, and to make a
gain of the temple, as of the other chapels of the
heathen, and to set the high priesthood to sale every
year : not at all considering the power of God, but
puffed up with his ten thousands of footmen, and his
thousands of horsemen, and his fourscore elephants. So
he came to Judaea, and drew near to Bethsura, which
was a strong town, but distant from Jerusalem about five
furlongs, and he laid sore siege unto it. Now when
they that were with Maccabeus heard that he besieged
the holds, they and all the people with lamentation and
tears besought the Lord that He would send a good
angel to deliver Israel. Then Maccabaeus himself first
of all took weapons, exhorting the other that they
would jeopard themselves together with him to help their
brethren : so they went forth together with a willing
mind. And as they were at Jerusalem, there appeared
before them on horseback one in white clothing, shaking
his armour of gold. Then they praised the merciful God
all together, and took heart, insomuch that they were
ready not only to fight with men, but with most cruel
beasts, and to pierce through walls of iron. Thus they
marched forward in their armour, having an helper from
heaven : for the Lord was merciful unto them. And
giving a charge upon their enemies like lions, they slew
eleven thousand footmen, and sixteen hundred horse-
men, and put all the other to flight. Many of them also
being wounded escaped naked ; and Lysias himself fled
away shamefully, and so escaped. Who, as he was a
man of understanding, casting with himself what loss
he had had, and considering that the Hebrews could not
be overcome, because the Almighty God helped them, he
xi. 14-29] II. MACCABEES 487
sent unto them, and persuaded them to agree to all
reasonable conditions, and promised that he would per-
suade the king that he must needs be a friend unto
them.
Then Maccaba^us consented to all that Lysias desired,
being careful of the common good ; and whatsoever
Maccab^eus wrote unto Lysias concerning the Jews, the
king granted it. For there were letters written unto
the Jews from Lysias to this effect : — " Lysias unto the
people of the Jews sendeth greeting : John and Absa-
lom, who were sent from you, delivered me the petition
subscribed, and made request for the performance of the
contents thereof. Therefore what things soever were
meet to be reported to the king, I have declared them,
and he hath granted as much as might be. If then ye
will keep yourselves loyal to the state, hereafter also
will I endeavour to be a means of your good. But of
the particulars I have given order both to these, and the
other that came from me, to commune with you. Fare
ye well. The hundred and eight and fortieth year, the
four and twentieth day of the month Dioscorinthius. "
Now the king's letter contained these words : — " King
Antiochus unto his brother Lysias sendeth greeting :
Since our father is translated unto the gods, our will is,
that they that are in our realm live quietly, that every
one may attend upon his own affairs. We understand
also that the Jews would not consent to our father, for
to be brought unto the custom of the Gentiles, but had
rather keep their own manner of living : for the which
cause they require of us, that we should suffer them to
live after their own laws. Wherefore our mind is, that
this nation shall be in rest, and we have determined to
restore them their temple, that they may live according
to the customs of their forefathers. Thou shalt do well
therefore to send unto them, and grant them peace, that
when they are certified of our mind, they may be of good
comfort, and ever go cheerfully about their own affairs."
And the letter of the king unto the nation of the Jews
was after this maner : — "King Antiochus sendeth
greeting unto the council, and the rest of the Jews : If ye
fare well, we have our desire ; we are also in good health.
Menelaus declared unto us, that your desire was to
488 II. MACCABEES [xi. 30— xii. 7
return home, and to follow your own business : where-
fore they that will depart shall have our friendship till
the thirtieth day of Xanthicus with full permission that
the Jews shall use their own kind of meats and laws, as
before ; and none of them any manner of ways shall be
molested for things ignorantly done. I have sent also
Menelaus, that he may comfort you. Fare ye well. In
the hundred forty and eighth year, and the fifteenth day
of the month Xanthicus."
The Romans also sent unto them a letter containing
these words : — " Quintus Memmius and Titus Manlius,
ambassadors of the Romans, send greeting unto the
people of the Jews : Whatsoever Lysias the king's
cousin hath granted, therewith we also are well pleased.
But touching such things as he judged to be referred to
the king, after ye have advised thereof, send one forth-
with, that we may declare as it is convenient for you r
for we are now going to Antioch, Therefore send some
with speed, that we may know what is your mind. Fare-
well. This hundred and eight and fortieth year, the
fifteenth day of the month Xanthicus."
When these covenants were made, Lysias went unto
the king, and the Jews were about their husbandry. But
of the governors of several places, Timotheus, and Apol-
lonius the son of Gennaeus, also Hieronymus, and Demo-
phon, and beside them Nicanor the governor of Cyprus,
would not suffer them to be quiet, and live in peace.
The men of Joppa also did such an ungodly deed : they
prayed the Jews that dwelt among them to go with their
wives and children into the boats which they had pre-
pared, as though thev had meant them no hurt. Who
accepted of it according to the common decree of the
city, as being desirous to live in peace, and suspecting
nothing : but when they were gone forth into the deep,
they drowned no less than two hundred of them. When
Judas heard of this cruelty done unto his countrymen,
he commanded those that were with him to make them
ready. And calling upon God the righteous Judge, he
came against those murderers of his brethren, and burnt
the haven by night, and set the boats on fire, and those
that fled thither he slew. And when the town was shut
up, he went backward, as if he would return to root out
xii. 8-20] 11. MACCABEES 489
all them of the city of Joppa. But when he heard that
the Jamnites were minded to do in Uke manner unto the
Jews that dwelt among them, he came upon the Jamnites
also by night, and set fire on the haven and the navy,
so that the light of the fire was seen at Jerusalem two
hundred and forty furlongs off.
Now when they were gone from thence nine furlongs
in their journey toward Timotheus, no fewer than five
thousand men on foot and five hundred horsemen of the
Arabians set upon him. Whereupon there was a very
sore battle; but Judas' side by the help of God got the
victory ; so that the nomads of Arabia, being overcome,
besought Judas for peace, promising both to give him
cattle, and to pleasure him otherwise. Then Judas,
thinking indeed that they would be profitable in many
things, granted them peace : whereupon they shook
hands, and so they departed to their tents. He went also
about to make a bridge to a certain strong city, which was
fenced about with walls, and inhabited by people of divers
countries ; and the name of it was Caspin. But they that
were within it put such trust in the strength of the walls
and provision of victuals, that they behaved themselves
rudely toward them that were with Judas, railing and
blaspheming, and uttering such words as w-ere not^ to
be spoken. Wherefore Judas with his company, calling
upon the great Lord of the world, who without any
rams or engines of war did cast down Jericho in the
time of Joshua, gave a fierce assault against the walls,
and took the city by the will of God, and made unspeak-
able slaughters, insomuch that a lake two furlongs broad
near adjoining thereunto, appeared to be filled with the
deluge of blood. Then departed they from thence seven
hundred and fifty furlongs, and came to Charax unto
the Jews that are' called Tubieni. But as for Timotheus,
they found him not in the places : for before he had
dispatched any thing, he departed from thence, having
left a very strong garrison in a certain hold. Howbeit
Dositheus and Sosipater, who were of Maccabaeus' cap-
tains, went forth, and slew those that Timotheus had
left in the fortress, above ten thousand men. And Mac-
caba?us ranged his army by bands, and set them over
the bands, and went against Timotheus, who had about
R 2
490 n. MACCABEES [xii. 21-31
him an hundred and twenty thousand men of foot, and
two thousand and five hundred horsemen.
Now when Timotheus had knowledge of Judas
coming, he sent the women and children and the other
baggage unto a fortress called Carnion : for the town
was hard to besiege, and uneasy to come unto,_ by reason
of the straitness of the approaches on all sides. But
when the first band of Judas came in sight, the enemies,
being smitten with fear and terror through the appearmg
of Him that seeth all things, fled amain, one running this
way, another that way, so as that they were often hurt
of their own men, and wounded with the points of their
own swords. Judas also was very earnest in pursuing
them, killing those wicked wretches, of whom he slew
about thirty thousand men. Moreover Timotheus him-
self fell into the hands of Dositheus and Sosipater, whom
he besought with much craft to let him go with his life,
because he had many of the Jews' parents, and the
brethren of some of them, who, if they put him to death,
should not be regarded. So when he had assured them
with many words that he would restore them without
hurt, according to the agreement, they let him go for
the saving of their brethren. Then Maccabaeus marched
forth to Carnion, and to the temple of Atergatis, and
there he slew five and twenty thousand persons. And
after he had put to flight and destroyed them, Judas
removed the host toward Ephron, a strong city, wherein
Lysias abode, and a great multitude of divers nations,
and the strong young men kept the walls, and defended
them mightily : wherein also was great provision of
engines and darts. But when Judas and his company
had called upon Almighty God, who with His power
breaketh the strength of His enemies, they won the
city, and slew twenty and five thousand of them that
were within.
From thence they departed to Scythopolis, which lieth
six hundred furlongs from Jerusalem. But when the
Jews that dwelt there had testified that the Scythopoli-
tans dealt lovingly with them, and entreated them kindly
in the time of their adversity, they gave them thanks,
desiring them to be friendly still unto them : and so they
game to Jerusalem, the feast of ^yeeks approaching.
xii. 32-45] II. MACCABEES 49^
And after the feast, called Pentecost, they went forth
against Gorgias the governor of Idumaea, who came
out with three thousand men of foot and four hundred
horsemen. And it happened that in their fightmg to-
gether a few of the Jews were slain. At which time
Dositheus, one of Bacenor's company, who was on
horseback, and a strong man, pressed hard on Gorgias,
and taking hold of his coat drew him by force ; and when
he would have taken that cursed man alive, a horseman
of Thracia coming upon him smote off his shoulder, so
that Gorgias fled unto Marisa. Now when they that were
with Esdris had fought long, and were weary, Judas
called upon the Lord, that He would shew Himself to
be their helper and leader of the battle. And with that
he began in his own language, and sung psalrns with a
loud voice, and rushing unawares upon Gorgias' men,
he put them to flight.
So Judas gathered his host, and came into the city of
Adullam. And when the seventh day came, they puri-
fied themselves, as the custom was, and kept the sabbath
in the same place. And upon the day following, as the
use had been, Judas and his company came to take up
the bodies of them that were slain, and to bury them
with their kinsmen in their fathers' graves. Now under
the coats of every one that was slain they found things
consecrated to the idols of the Jamnites, which is for-
bidden the Jews by the law. Then every man saw that
this was the cause wherefore they were slain. All men
therefore praising the Lord, the righteous Judge, who
had opened the things that were hid, betook themselves
unto prayer, and besought Him that the sin committed
might wholly be put out of remembrance. Besides, that
noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves from
sin, forsomuch as they saw before their eyes the things
that came to pass for the sins of those that were slain.
And when he had made a gathering throughout the com-
pany to the sum of two thousand drachms of silver, he
sent it to Jerusalem to offer a sin off"ering, doing therein
very well and honestly, in that he was mindful of the
resurrection : for if he had not hoped that they that were
slain should have risen again, it had been superfluous
and vain to pray for the dead. And also in that he per-
492 II. MACCABEES [xiii. 1-12
ceived that there was great favour laid up for those that
died godly, it was an holy and good thought. \Vhere-
upon he made a reconciliation for the dead, that they
might be delivered from sin.
In the hundred forty and ninth year it was told Judas,
that Antlochus Eupator was coming with a great power
into Judaea, and with him Lysias his guardian and chan-
cellor, each having a Greek force, of footmen, an hun-
dred and ten thousand, and horsemen five thousand
and three hundred, and elephants two and twenty, and
three hundred chariots armed with hooks. Menelaus
also joined himself with them, and with great dissimula-
tion encouraged Antiochus, not for the safeguard of the
country, but because he thought to have been made
governor. But the King of kings moved Antiochus'
mind against this wicked wretch, and Lysias informed
the king that this man was the cause of all mischief,
so that the king commanded to bring him unto Berea,
and to put him to death, as the manner is in that place.
Now there was in that place a tower of fifty cubits high,
full of ashes, and it had a round instrument, which on
every side hanged down into the ashes. And whosoever
was condemned of sacrilege, or had committed any other
grievous crime, there did all men thrust him unto death.
Such a death it happened that wicked man to die, not
having so much as burial in the earth ; and that most
justly : for inasmuch as he had committed many sins
about the altar, whose fire and ashes were holy, he
received his death in ashes.
Now the king came with a barbarous and haughty
mind to do far worse to the Jews, than had been done
in his father's time. Which things when Judas per-
ceived, he commanded the multitude to call upon the
Lord night and day, that if ever at any other time, He
would now also help them, being at the point to
be put from their law, from their country, and
from the holy temple : and that He would not suffer
the people, that had even now been but a little
refreshed, to be in subjection to the blasphemous
nations. So when they had all done this together, and
besought the merciful Lord with weeping and fasting,
and lying flat upon the ground three days long, Judas,
xiii. 13-26] II. MACCABEES 493
having exhorted them, commanded they should be in
a readiness. And Judas, being apart with the elders,
determined, before the king's host should enter into
JudcEa, and get the city, to go forth and try the matter
in fight by the help of the Lord. So when he had com-
mitted all to the Creator of the world, and exhorted his
soldiers to fight manfully, even unto death, for the laws,
the temple, the city, the country, and the commonwealth,
he camped by Modin : and having given the watchword
to them that were about him, Victory is of God ; with
the most valiant and choice young men he went in into
the king's tent by night, and slew in the camp about four
thousand men, and the chiefest of the elephants, with
him that was in the tower upon him. And at last they
filled the camp with fear and tumult, and departed
with good success. This was done in the break of
the day, because the protection of the Lord did help
him.
Now when the king had taken a taste of the manliness
of the Jews, he went about to take the holds by policy,
and marched towards Bethsura, which was a strong hold
of the Jews : but he was put to flight, failed, and lost of
his men : for Judas had conveyed unto them that were In
it such things as were necessary. But Rhodocus, who
was in the Jews' host, disclosed the secrets to the ene-
mies ; therefore he was sought out, and when they had
gotten him, they put him in prison. The king treated
with them in Bethsura the second time, gave his hand,
took theirs, departed, fought with Judas, was over-
come ; heard that Philip, who was left over the affairs
in Antioch, had become reckless, was confounded, made
to the Jews an overture of peace, submitted himself, and
sware to acknowledge all their rights, agreed with them,
and oft'ered sacrifice, honoured the temple, and dealt
kindly with the place, and accepted well of Maccabaeus,
left Hegemonides governor from Ptolemais even unto
the Gerrhenians, came to Ptolemais. The men of Ptole-
mais were displeased at the treaty, for they had exceed-
ing great indignation against the Jews ; they desired to
annul the articles of the agreement. Lysias went up to
the judgment seat, said as much as could be in defence
of the cause, persuaded, pacified, made them well
494 11. MACCABEES [xiv. 1-15
affected, returned to Antioch. ^ Thus it went touching-
the king's coming and departing.
After three years was Judas informed, that Demetrius
the son of Seleucus, having entered by the haven ot
TripoUs with a great power and navy, had taken the
country, and killed Antiochus, and Lysias his protector
Now one Alcimus, who had been high priest, and had
defiled himself wilfully in the times of their mingling
with the Gentiles, seeing that by no means he could save
himself, nor have any more access to the holy altar,
came to king Demetrius in the hundred and one and
fiftieth year, presenting unto him a crown of gold, and
a palm, and also of the boughs which were used solemnly
in the temple : and so that day he held his peace. How-
beit, having gotten opportunity to further his foolish
ente'rprize, and being called into counsel by Demetrius,
and asked how the Jews stood affected, and what they
intended, he answered thereunto :— " Those of the Jews
that be called Hasidaeans, whose captain is Judas Mac-
cabeus, nourish war, and are seditious, and will not let
the realm be in peace. Wherefore, having laid aside
mine ancestral glory, I mean the high priesthood, I am
now come hither : first, verily for the unfeigned care I
have of things pertaining to the king; and secondly,
even for that I intend the good of mine own countrymen :
for all our nation is in no small misery through theun-
advised dealing of them aforesaid. Wherefore, O king,
seeing thou knowest all these things, be careful for the
country, and our nation, which is pressed on every side,
according to the clemency that thou readily shewest unto
all. For as long as Judas liveth, it is not possible that
the state should be quiet."
This was no sooner spoken of him, but others of the
king's friends, being maliciously set against Judas, did
more incense Demetrius. And forthwith calling Nicanor,
who had been master of the elephants, and making him
governor over Judaea, he sent him forth, commanding
him to slay Judas, and to scatter them that were with
him, and to make Alcimus high priest of the great
temple. Then the heathen, that had fled out of Juda?a
from Judas, came to Nicanor by flocks, thinking the
harm and calamities of the Jews to be their welfare. Now
xiv. 16-28] II. MACCABEES 495
when the Jews heard of Nicanor's coming, and that the
heathen were up against them, they cast earth upon their
heads, and made supplication to Him that had estab-
lished His people for ever, and who always helpeth His
portion with manifestations of His presence. So at the
commandment of the captain they removed straightway
from thence, and came near unto them at the town of
Lessau.
Now Simon, Judas' brother, had joined battle with
Nicanor, but was somewhat discomfited through the
sudden silence of his enemies. Nevertheless Nicanor,
hearing of the manliness of them that were with Judas,
and the courageousness that they had to fight for their
country, durst not try the matter by the sword. Where-
fore he sent Posidonius, and Theodotus, and Mattathias,
to make peace. So when they had taken long advise-
ment thereupon, and the captain had made the multitude
acquainted therewith, and it appeared that they were all
of one mind, they consented to the covenants, and ap-
pointed a day to meet in together by themselves : and
when the day came, and stools were set for either of
them, Judas placed armed men ready in convenient
places, lest some treachery should be suddenly practised
by the enemies : so they made a peaceable confer-
ence. Now Nicanor abode in Jerusalem, and did no
hurt, but sent away the people that came flocking unto
him. And he would not willingly have Judas out of
his sight : for he loved the man from his heart. He
prayed him also to take a wife, and to beget children :
so he married, was quiet, and took part of this life.
But Alcimus, perceiving the love that was betwixt
them, and considering the covenants that were made,
came to Demetrius, and told him that Nicanor was not
well affected toward the state ; for that he had ordained
Judas, a traitor to his realm, to be the king's successor.
Then the king being in a rage, and provoked with the
accusations of the most wicked man, wrote to Nicanor,
signifying that he was much displeased with the coven-
ants, and commanding him that he should send Macca-
baeus prisoner in all haste unto Antioch. When this
came to Nicanor's hearing, he was much confounded in
himself, and took it grievously that he should make void
496 II. MACCABEES [xiv. 29-42
the articles which were agreed upon, the man being in
no fault. But because there was no deahng against the
king, he watched his time to accompHsh this thing by
poHcy. Notwithstanding, when Maccabajus saw that
Nicanor began to be churlish unto him, and that he in-
treated him more roughly than he was wont, perceiving
that such sour behaviour came not of good, he gathered
together not a few of his men, and withdrew himself
from Nicanor. But the other, knowing that he was
notably prevented by Judas' policy, came into the great
and holy temple, and commanded the priests, that were
offering their usual sacrifices, to deliver him the man.
And when they sware that they could not tell where the
man was whom he sought, he stretched out his right
hand toward the temple, and made an oath in this man-
ner : — " If ye will not deliver me Judas as a prisoner, f
will lay this temple of God even with the ground, and
I will break down the altar, and erect a notable temple
unto Bacchus. "
After these words he departed. Then the priests lifted
up their hands towards heaven, and besought Him that
was ever a defender of their nation, saying in this man-
ner : — "Thou, O Lord of all things, who hast need of
nothing, wast pleased that the temple of Thine habitation
should be among us : therefore now, O holy Lord of all
holiness, keep this house ever undefiled, which lately
was cleansed, and stop every unrighteous mouth."
Now was there accused unto Nicanor one Razis, one
of the elders of Jerusalem, a lover of his countrymen,
and a man of very good report, who for his kindness
was called a father of the Jews. For in the former times,
when they mingled not themselves with the Gentiles, he
had been accused of Judaism, and did boldly jeopard his
body and life with all vehemency for the religion of the
Jews. So Nicanor, willing to declare the hate that he
bare unto the Jews, sent above five hundred men of war
to take him : for he thought by taking him to do the
Jews much hurt. Now when the multitude would have
taken the tower, and violently broken into the outer
door, and bade that fire should be brought to burn it,
he being ready to be taken on every side fell upon his
sword, choosing rather to die manfully, than to come
xiv. 43— XV. 9] II. MACCABEES 497
into the hands of the wicked, to be abused otherwise
than beseemed his noble birth : but missing his stroke
through haste, the multitude also rushing within the
doors, he ran boldly up to the wall, and cast himself
down manfully among the thickest of them. But they
quickly giving back, and a space being made, he fell
down into the midst of the void place. Nevertheless,
while there was yet breath within him, being inflamed
with anger, he rose up ; and though his blood gushed
out like spouts of water, and his wounds were grievous,
yet he ran through the midst of the throng ; and standing
upon a steep rock, when as his blood was now quite
gone, he plucked out his bowels, and taking them in both
his hands, he cast them upon the throng, and calling
upon the Lord of life and spirit to restore him those
again, he thus died.
But Nicanor, hearing that Judas and his company
were in the strong places about Samaria, resolved with-
out any danger to set upon them on the sabbath day.
Nevertheless the Jews that were compelled to go with
him said : — " O destroy not so cruelly and barbarously,
but give honour to that day, which He, that seeth all
things, hath honoured with holiness above other days."
Then the most ungracious wretch demanded, if there
were a Mighty One in heaven, that had commanded the
sabbath day to be kept. And when they said : — " There
is in heaven a living Lord, and mighty, who commanded
the seventh day to be kept:" then said the other: —
" And I also am mighty upon earth, and I command to
take arms, and to do the king's business." Yet he
obtained not to have his wicked will done. So Nicanor
in exceeding pride and haughtiness determined to set up
a public monument of his victory over Judas and them
that were with him.
But Maccabffius had ever sure confidence that the
Lord would help him : wherefore he exhorted his people
not to fear the coming of the heathen against them, but
to remember the help which in former times they had
received from heaven, and now to expect the victory and
aid, which should come unto them from the Almighty.
And so comforting them out of the law and the prophets,
and withal putting them in mind of the battles that they
498 II. MACCABEES [xv. 10-21
won afore, he made them more cheerful. And when he
had stirred up their minds, he gave them their charge,
shewing them therewithal the falsehood of the heathen,
and the breach of oaths. Thus he armed every one of
them, not so much with defence of shields and spears,
as with comfortable and good words : and beside that,
he told them a dream worthy to be believed, as if it had
been so indeed, which did not a little rejoice them.
And this was his vision : That Onias, who had been
high priest, a virtuous and a good man, reverend in
conversation, gentle in condition, well spoken also, and
exercised from a child in all points of virtue, holding up
his hands prayed for the whole body of the Jews. This
done, in like manner there appeared a man with gray
hairs, and exceeding glorious, who was of a wonderful
and excellent majesty. Then Onias answered, saying :
" This is a lover of the brethren, who prayeth much
for the people, and for the holy city, to wit, Jeremiah
the prophet of God." Whereupon Jeremiah holding
forth his right hand gave to Judas a sword of gold, and
in giving it spake thus :—" Take this holy sword, a
gift from God, with the which thou shalt wound the
adversaries."
Thus being well comforted by the words of Judas,
which were very good, and able to stir them up to valour,
and to encourage the hearts of the young men, they
determined not to pitch camp, but courageously to set
upon them, and manfully to try the matter by conflict,
because the city and the sanctuary and the temple were
in danger. For the care that they took for their wives,
and their children, their brethren, and kinsfolks, was in
least account with them : but the greatest and principal
fear was for the holy temple. Also they that were in the
city took not the least care, being troubled for the con-
flict abroad. And now, when as all looked what should
be the trial, and the enemies were already come near,
and the army was set in array, and the beasts conveni-
ently placed, and the horsemen set in wings, Macca-
b^eus seeing the coming of the multitude, and the divers
preparations of armour, and the fierceness of the beasts,
stretched out his hands toward heaven, and called upon
the Lord that worketh wonders, knowing that victory
XV. 22-36] II. MACCABEES 499
Cometh not by arms, but even as it seemeth good to
Him, He giveth it to such as are worthy : therefore in
his prayer he said after this manner : — " O Lord, Thou
didst send Thine angel in the time of Hezekiah king of
Judaea, and didst slay in the host of Sennacherib an
hundred fourscore and five thousand : wherefore now
also, O Lord of heaven, send a good angel before us
for a fear and dread unto them ; and through the might
of Thine arm let those be stricken with terror, that come
against Thy holy people to blaspheme." And he ended
thus.
Then Nicanor and they that were with him came for-
ward with trumpets- and songs. But Judas and his
company encountered the enemies with invocation and
prayer. So that fighting with their hands, and praying
unto God with their hearts, they slew no less than thirty
and five thousand men : for through the appearance of
God they were greatly cheered. Now when the battle
was done, returning again with joy, they knew that
Nicanor lay dead in his armour. Then they made a
great shout and a noise, praising the Almighty in their
own language. And Judas, who was ever the chief de-
fender of the citizens both in body and mind, and who
continued his love toward his countrymen all his life,
commanded to strike off Nicanor's head, and his hand
with his shoulder, and bring them to Jerusalem. So
when he was there, and had called them of his nation
together, and set the priests before the altar, he sent for
them that were of the tower, and shewed them vile
Nicanor's head, and the hand of that blasphemer, which
with proud boasting he had stretched out against the
holy temple of the Almighty. And when he had cut out
the tongue of that ungodly Nicanor, he commanded that
they should give it by pieces unto the fowls, and hang
up the reward of his madness before the temple.
So every man praised toward the heaven the glorious
Lord, saying : — " Blessed be He that hath kept His own
place undefiled. " He hanged also Nicanor's head upon
the tower, an evident and manifest sign unto all of the
help of the Lord. And they ordained all with a common
decree in no case to let that day pass without solemnity,
but to celebrate the thirteenth day of the twelfth month,
500 11. MACCABEES [xv. 37-39
which in the Syrian tongue is called Adar, the day before
the day of Mordecai.
Thus went it with Nicanor : and from that time forth
the Hebrews had the city in their power. And here will
I make an end. And if I have done well, and as is fitting
the story, it is that which I desired : but if slenderly and
meanly, it is that which I could attain unto. For as it
is hurtful to drink wine or water alone ; and as wine
mingled with water is pleasant, and delighteth the taste :
even so speech finely framed delighteth the ears of them
that read the story. And here shall be an end.
I. ESDRAS
And Josias held the feast of the passover in Jeru-
salem unto his Lord, and offered the passover the
fourteenth day of the first month ; having- set the priests
accordingf to their daily courses, being- arrajed in long
garments, in the temple of the Lord. And he spake
unto the Levites, the holy ministers of Israel, that they
should hallow themselves unto the Lord, to set the holy
ark of the Lord in the house that king Solomon the son
of David had built : and said : — " Ye shall no more bear
the ark upon your shoulders : now therefore serve the
Lord your God, and minister unto His people Israel,
and prepare you after your families and kindreds,
according as David the king of Israel prescribed, and
according to the magnificence of Solomon his son : and
standing in the temple according to the several dignity
of the families of you the Levites, who minister in the
presence of your brethren the children of Israel, offer
the passover in order, and make ready the sacrifices for
your brethren, and keep the passover according to the
commandment of the Lord, which was given unto
Moses." And unto the people that was found there
Josias gave thirty thousand lambs and kids, and three
thousand calves : these things were given of the king's
allowance, according as he promised, to the people, to
the priests, and to the Levites. And Helkias, Zacha-
rias, and Syelus, the governors of the temple, gave to
the priests for the passover two thousand and six
hundred sheep, and three hundred calves. And
Jeconias, and Samaias, and Nathanael his brother, and
Assabias, and Ochiel, and Joram, captains over thou-
sands, gave to the Levites for the passover five thousand
sheep, and seven hundred calves. And when these
things were done, the priests and Levites, having the
unleavened bread, stood in very comely order according
to the kindreds, and according to the several dignities
of the fathers, before the people, to offer to the Lord,
501
502 I. ESDRAS [i. 12-27
as it is written in the book of Moses : and thus did
they in the morning. And they roasted the passover
with fire, as appertaineth : as for the sacrifices, they
sod them in brass pots and pans with a good savour,
and set them before all the people : and afterward they
prepared for themselves, and for the priests their
brethren, the sons of Aaron. For the priests offered
the fat until night : and the Levites prepared for them-
selves, and the priests their brethren, the sons of Aaron.
The holy singers also, the sons of Asaph, were in their
order, according to the appointment of David, to wit,
Asaph, Zacharias, and Jeduthun, who was of the king's
retinue. Moreover the porters were at every gate; it
was not lawful for any to go from his ordinary service :
for their brethren the Levites prepared for them. Thus
were the things that belonged to the sacrifices of the
Lord accomplished in that day, that they might hold
the passover, and offer sacrifices upon the altar of the
Lord, according to the commandment of king Josias.
So the children of Israel which were present held the
passover at that time, and the feast of sweet bread seven
days. And such a passover was not kept in Israel since
the time of the prophet Samuel. Yea, all the kings of
Israel held not such a passover as Josias, and the priests,
and the Levites, and the Jews, held with all Israel that
were found dwelling at Jerusalem. In the eighteenth
year of the reign of Josias was this passover kept.
And the works of Josias were upright before his Lord
with an heart full of godliness. As for the things that
came to pass in his time, they were written in former
times, concerning those that sinned, and did wickedly
against the Lord above all people and kingdoms, and
how they grieved Him exceedingly, so that the words
of the Lord rose up against Israel.
Now after all these acts of Josias it came to pass,
that Pharaoh the king of Egypt came to raise war at
Carchemish upon Euphrates : and Josias went out
against him. But the king of Egypt sent to him,
saying :^ — " What have I to do with thee, O king of
Judea? I am not sent out from the Lord God against
thee ; for my war is upon Euphrates : and now the Lord
is with me, yea, the Lord is with me hasting me for-
i. 28-42] I. ESDRAS 503
ward : depart from me, and be not against the Lord."
Howbeit Josias did not turn back his chariot from him,
but undertook to fight with him, not regarding the
words of the prophet Jeremy spoken by the mouth of
the Lord : but joined battle with him in the plain of
Megiddo, and the princes came against king Josias.
Then said the king unto his servants : — " Carry me
away out of the battle; for I am very weak." And
immediately his servants took him away out of the
battle. Then gat he up upon his second chariot ; and
being brought back to Jerusalem died, and was buried
in his father's sepulchre. And in all Jewry they
mourned for Josias, yea, Jeremy the prophet lamented
for Josias, and the chief men with the women made
lamentation for him unto this day : and this was given
out for an ordinance to be done continually in all the
nation of Israel. These things are written in the book
of the stories of the kings of Judah, and every one of
the acts that Josias did, and his glory, and his under-
standing in the law of the Lord, and the things that
he had done before, and the things now recited,
are reported in the book of the kings of Israel and
Judea.
And the people took Joachaz the son of Josias, and
made him king instead of Josias his father, when he
was twenty and three years old. And he reigned in
Judea and in Jerusalem three months : and then the
king of Egypt deposed him from reigning in Jerusalem.
And he set a tax upon the land of an hundred talents of
silver and one talent of gold. The king of Egypt also
made king Joakim his brother king of Judea and Jeru-
salem. And he bound Joakim and the nobles : but
Zarakes his brother he apprehended, and brought him
out of Egypt.
Five and twenty years old was Joakim when he was
made king in the land of Judea and Jerusalem ; and he
did evil before the Lord. Wherefore against him
Nabuchodonosor the king of Babylon came up, and
bound him with a chain of brass, and carried him into
Babylon. Nabuchodonosor also took of the holy vessels
of the Lord, and carried them away, and set them in
his own temple at Babylon, But those things that are
504 I. ESDRAS [i. 43-57
recorded of him, and of his uncleanness and impiety,
are written in the chronicles of the kings.
And Joakim his son reigned in his stead : he was
made king- being- eig-hteen years old ; and reigned but
three months and ten days in Jerusalem; and did evil
before the Lord.
So after a year Nabuchodonosor sent and caused him
to be brought into Babylon with the holy vessels of the
Lord; and made Zedekias king of Judea and Jeru-
salem, when he was one and twenty years old; and
he reig-ned eleven years : and he did evil also in the
sight of the Lord, and cared not for the words that
were spoken unto him by the prophet Jeremy from
the mouth of the Lord. And after that king Nabucho-
donosor had made him to swear by the name of the
Lord, he forswore himself, and rebelled; and harden-
ing his neck, and his heart, he transgressed the laws
of the Lord God of Israel. The governors also of the
people and of the priests did many things against the
laws, and passed all the pollutions of all nations,
and defiled the temple of the Lord, which was sancti-
fied in Jerusalem. Nevertheless the God of their
fathers sent by His messenger to call them back,
because He spared them and His tabernacle also. But
they had His messengers in derision ; and, look, when
the Lord spake unto them, they made a sport of His
prophets : so far forth, that He, being wroth with
His people for their great ungodliness, commanded the
kings of the Chaldees to come up against them ; who
slew their young men with the sword, yea, even within
the compass of their holy temple, and spared neither
young man nor maid, old man nor child, among them ;
for He delivered all into their hands. And they took
all the holy vessels of the Lord, both great and small,
with the vessels of the ark of God, and the king's
treasures, and carried them away into Babylon. As
for the house of the Lord, they burnt it, and brake
down the walls of Jerusalem, and set fire upon her
towers : and as for her glorious things, they never
ceased till they had consumed and brought them all to
nought : and the people that were not slain with the
sword he carried unto Babylon : who became servants
i. 58— ii. 13] I. ESDRAS 505
to him and his children, till the Persians reigned, to
fulfil the word of the Lord spoken by the mouth of
Jeremy: — "Until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths,
the whole time of her desolation shall she rest, until
the full term of seventy years."
In the first year of Cyrus king of the Persians, that
the word of the Lord might be accomplished, that He
had promised by the mouth of Jeremy ; the Lord raised
up the spirit of Cyrus the king of the Persians, and
he made proclamation through all his kingdom, and
also by writing, saying: — "Thus saith Cyrus king of
the Persians; The Lord of Israel, the most high Lord,
hath made me king of the whole world, and commanded
me to build Him an house at Jerusalem in Jewry. If
therefore there be any of you that are of His people,
let the Lord, even his Lord, be with him, and let him
go up to Jerusalem that is in Judea, and build the
house of the Lord of Israel : for He is the Lord that
dwelleth in Jerusalem. Whosoever then dwell in the
places about, let them help him, those, I say, that are
his neighbours, with gold, and with silver, with gifts,
with horses, and with cattle, and other things, w^hich
have been set forth by vow, for the temple of the Lord
at Jerusalem."
Then the chief of the families of Judea and of the
tribe of Benjamin stood up ; the priests also, and the
Levites, and all they whose mind the Lord had moved
to go up, and to build an house for the Lord at Jeru-
salem, and they that dwelt round about them, and
helped them in all things with silver and gold, with
horses and cattle, and with very many free gifts of a
great number whose minds were stirred up thereto.
King Cyrus also brought forth the holy vessels, which
Nabuchodonosor had carried away from Jerusalem, and
had set up in his temple of idols. Now when Cyrus
king of the Persians had brought them forth, he
delivered them to Mithridates his treasurer : and by
him they were delivered to Sanabassar the governor
of Judea. And this was the number of them ; A thou-
sand golden cups, and a thousand of silver, censers of
silver twenty nine, vials of gold thirty, and of silver
two thousand four hundred and ten, and a thousand
5o6 I. ESDRAS [ii. 14-26
other vessels. So all the vessels of gold and of silver,
which were carried away, were five thousand four
hundred threescore and nine. These were brought back
by Sanabassar, together with them of the captivity,
from Babylon to Jerusalem.
But in the time of Artaxerxes king- of the Persians
Belemus, and Mithridates, and Tabellius, and Rathu-
mus, and Beeltethmus, and Semellius the secretary, with
others that were in commission with them, dwelling
in Samaria and other places, wrote unto him against
them that dwelt in Judaea and Jerusalem these letters
following- :— -" To king- Artaxerxes our lord, Thy
servants, Rathumus the storywriter, and Semellius the
scribe, and the rest of their council, and the judges
that are in Ccelosyria and Phenice. Be it now known
to the lord the king, that the Jews that are come up
from you to us, being come into Jerusalem, that rebel-
lious and wicked city, do build the m.arketplaces, and
repair the walls of it, and do lay the foundation of the
temple. Now if this city and the walls thereof be
made up again, they will not only refuse to give tribute,
but also rebel against kings. And forasmuch as the
things pertaining to the temple are now in hand, we
think it meet not to neglect such a matter, but to speak
unto our lord the king, to the intent that, if it be thy
pleasure, it may be sought out in the books of thy
fathers : and thou shalt find in the chronicles what is
written concerning these things, and shalt understand
that that city was rebellious, troubling both kings and
cities : and that the Jews were rebellious, and raised
always wars therein ; for the which cause even this city
was made desolate. ^\'herefore now we do declare
unto thee, O lord the king, that if this city be built
again, and the walls thereof set up anew, thou shalt
from henceforth have no passage into Crelosyria and
Phenice. "
Then the king wrote back again to Rathumus the
storywriter, to Beeltethmus, to Semellius the scribe, and
to the rest that were in commission, and dwellers in
Samaria and Syria and Phenice, after this manner : —
' ' I have read the epistle which ye have sent unto me :
therefore I commanded to make diligent search, and it
ii. 27— iii. 10] I. ESDRAS 507
hath been found that that city was from the beginning-
practising- against kings ; and the men therein were
given to rebelhon and war : and that mighty kings and
fierce were in Jerusalem, who reigned and exacted
tributes in Coelosyria and Phenice. Now therefore I
have commanded to hinder those men from building the
city, and heed to be taken that there be no more done
in it ; and that those wicked workers proceed no further
to the annoyance of kings." Then king Artaxerxes his
letters being read, Rathumus, and Semellius the scribe,
and the rest that were in commission with them, remov-
ing in haste toward Jerusalem with a troop of horse-
men and a multitude of people in battle array, began
to hinder the builders ; and the building of the temple
in Jerusalem ceased until the second year of the reign
of Darius king of the Persians.
Now when Darius reigned, he made a great feast
unto all his subjects, and unto all his household, and
unto all the princes of Media and Persia, and to all
the governors and captains and lieutenants that were
under him, from India unto Ethiopia, of an hundred
twenty and seven provinces. And when they had eaten
and drunken, and being satisfied were gone home, then
Darius the king went into his bedchamber, and slept,
and soon after awaked.
Then Miree young men, that were of the guard that
kept the king's body, spake one to another:- — "Let
every one of us speak a sentence : he that shall over-
come, and whose sentence shall seem wiser than the
others, unto him shall the king Darius give great gifts,
and great things in token of victory : as, to be clothed
in purple, to drink in gold, and to sleep upon gold,
and a chariot with bridles of gold, and an headtire of
fine linen, and a chain about his neck : and he shall
sit next to Darius because of his wisdom, and shall be
called Darius' cousin." And then every one wrote
his sentence, sealed it, and laid it under king Darius'
pillow; and said that, when the king is risen, some
will give him the writings ; and of whose side the king
and the three princes of Persia shall judge that his
sentence is the wisest, to him shall the victory be given,
as was appointed. The first wrote: — "Wine is the
5o8 I. ESDRAS [iii. ii— iv. 5
strongest." The second wrote: — "The king- is
strongest." The third wrote : — " Women are strongest :
but above all things Truth beareth away the victory."
Now when the king was risen up, they took their
writings, and delivered them unto him, and so he read
them : and sending forth he called all the princes of
Persia and Media, and the governors, and the captains,
and the lieutenants, and the chief officers ; and sat him
down in the royal seat of judgment ; and the writings
were read before them. And he said : — " Call the
young men, and they shall declare their own sentences."
So they were called, and came in. And he said unto
them: — "Declare unto us your mind concerning the
writings. "
Then began the first, who had spoken of the strength
of wine; and he said thus : — " O ye men, how exceed-
ing strong is wine ! it causeth all men to err that drink
it : it maketh the mind of the king and of the fatherless
child to be all one; of the bondman and of the freeman,
of the poor man and of the rich : it turneth also every
thought into jollity and mirth, so that a man remem-
bereth neither sorrow nor debt : and it maketh every
heart rich, so that a man remembereth neither king nor
governor ; and it maketh to speak all things by talents :
and when they are in their cups, they forget their love
both to friends and brethren, and a little after draw
out swords : but when they are from the wine, they
remember not what they have done. O ye men, is not
wine the strongest, that enforceth to do thus?" And
when he had so spoken, he held his peace.
Then the second, that had spoken of the strength
of the king, began to say : — " O ye men, do not men
excel in strength, that bear rule over sea and land,
and all things in them? But yet the king is more
mighty : for he is lord of all these things, and hath
dominion over them ; and whatsoever he commandeth
them they do. If he bid them make war the one against
the other, they do it : if he send them out against the
enemies, they go, and break down mountains, walls,
and towers. They slay and are slain, and transgress
not the king's commandment : if they get the victory,
they bring all to the king, as well the spoil, as all things
iv. 6-23] I. ESDRAS 509
else. Likewise for those that are no soldiers, and have
not to do with wars, but use husbandry, when they have
reaped again that which they had sown, they bring it
to the king, and compel one another to pay tribute unto
the king. And yet he is but one man : if he command
to kill, they kill; if he command to spare, they spare; if
he command to smite, they smite; if he command to
make desolate, they make desolate; if he command to
build, they build ; if he command to cut down, they cut
down ; if he command to plant, they plant. So all his
people and his armies obey him : furthermore he lieth
down, he eateth and drinketh, and taketh his rest : and
these keep watch round about him, neither may any
one depart, and do his own business, neither disobey
they him in any thing. O ye men, how should not the
king be mightiest, when in such sort he is obeyed?" And
he held his tongue.
Then the third, who had spoken of women, and of
the truth, (this was Zorobabel) began to speak. " O ye
men, it is not the great king, nor the multitude of men,
neither is it wine, that excelleth ; who is it then that
ruleth them, or hath the lordship over them? are they
not women? Women have borne the king and all the
people that bear rule by sea and land. Even of them
came they : and they nourished them up that planted the
vineyards, from whence the wine cometh. These also
make garments for men ; these bring glory unto men ;
and without women cannot men be. Yea, and if men
have gathered together gold and silver, or any other
goodly thing, do they not love a woman which is comely
in favour and beauty? And letting all those things go,
do they not gape, and even with open mouth fix their
eyes fast on her ; and have not all men more desire unto
her than unto silver or gold, or any goodly thing what-
soever? A man leaveth his own father that brought
him up, and his own country, and cleaveth unto his
wife. He sticketh not to spend his life with his wife,
and remembereth neither father, nor mother, nor
country. By this also ye must know that women have
dominion over you : do ye not labour and toil, and give
and bring all to the woman? Yea, a man taketh his
sword, and goeth his way to rob and to steal, to sail
510 I. ESDRAS [iv. 24-41
upon the sea and upon rivers; and looketh upon a lion,
and goeth in the darkness; and when he hath stolen,
spoiled, and robbed, he bringeth it to his love. Where-
fore a man loveth his wife better than father or mother.
Yea, many there be that have run out of their wits for
women, and become servants for their sakes. Many
also have perished, have erred, and sinned, for women.
And now do ye not believe me? is not the king great
in his power? do not all regions fear to touch him?
Yet did I see him and Apame the king's concubine, the
daughter of the admirable Bartacus, sitting at the right
hand of the king, and taking the crown from the king's
head, and setting it upon her own head ; she also struck
the king with her left hand. And yet for all this the
king gaped and gazed upon her with open mouth : if
she laughed upon him, he laughed also : but if she took
any displeasure at him, the king was fain to flatter, that
she might be reconciled to him again. O ye men, how
can it be but women should be strong, seeing they do
thus?"
Then the king and the princes looked one upon
another: so he began to speak of the truth. " O ye
men, are not women strong? great is the earth, high is
the heaven, swift is the sun in his course, for he com-
passeth the heavens round about, and fetcheth his course
again to his own place in one day. Is He not great that
maketh these things? therefore great is the truth, and
stronger than all things. AH the earth calleth upon the
truth, and the heaven blesseth it : all works shake and
tremble at it, and with it is no unrighteous thing. Wine
is wicked, the king is wicked, women are wicked, all
the children of men are wicked, and such are all their
wicked works ; and there is no truth in them ; in their
unrighteousness also they shall perish. As for the truth,
it endureth, and is always strong ; it liveth and con-
quereth for evermore. With her there is no accepting
of persons or rewards ; but she doeth the things that
are just, and refraineth from all unjust and wicked
things ; and all men do well like of her works. Neither
in her judgment is any unrighteousness ; and she is the
strength, kingdom, power, and majesty, of all ages.
Blessed be the God of truth," And with that he held
iv. 42-54] I. ESDRAS 511
his peace. And all the people then shouted, and said : —
" Great is Truth, and mighty above all things."
Then said the king unto him : — " Ask what thou wilt
more than is appointed in the writing, and we will give
it thee, because thou art found wisest ; and thou shalt
sit next me, and shalt be called my cousin." Then said
he unto the king: — " Remember thy vow, which thou
hast vowed to build Jerusalem, in the day when thou
earnest to thy kingdom, and to send away all the vessels
that were taken away out of Jerusalem, which Cyrus set
apart, when he vowed to destroy Babylon, and to send
them again thither. Thou also hast vowed to build up
the temple, which the Edomites burned when Judea was
made desolate by the Chaldees. And now, O lord the
king, this is that which I require, and which I desire of
thee, and this is the princely liberality proceeding from
thyself : I desire therefore that thou make good the vow,
the performance whereof with thine own mouth thou
hast vowed to the King of heaven."
Then Darius the king stood up, and kissed him, and
wrote letters for him unto all the treasurers and lieu-
tenants and captains and governors, that they should
safely convey on their way both him, and all those that
go up with him to build Jerusalem. He wrote letters
also unto the lieutenants that were in Coelosyria and
Phenice, and unto them in Libanus, that they should
bring cedar wood from Libanus unto Jerusalem, and
that they should build the city with him. Moreover
he wrote for all the Jews that went out of his realm
up into Jewry, concerning their freedom, that no officer,
no ruler, no lieutenant, nor treasurer, should forcibly
enter into their doors ; and that all the country which
they hold should be free without tribute ; and that the
Edomites should give over the villages of the Jews which
then they held : yea, that there should be yearly given
twenty talents to the building of the temple, until the
time that it were built ; and other ten talents yearly,
to maintain the burnt offerings upon the altar every
day, as they had a commandment to offer seventeen :
and that all they that went from Babylon to build the
city should have free liberty, as well they as their pos-
terity, and all the priests that went away. He wrote
512
L ESDRAS [iv. 55— V. 7
also concerning the charges, and the priests' vestments
wherein they minister ; and Ukewise for the charges of
the Levites, to be given them until the day that the
house were finished, and Jerusalem builded up. And
he commanded to give to all that kept the city pensions
and wages. He sent away also all the vessels from
Babylon, that Cyrus had set apart ; and all that Cyrus
had given in commandment, the same charged he also
to be done, and sent unto Jerusalem.
Now when this young man was gone forth, he lifted
up his face to heaven toward Jerusalem, and praised
the King of heaven, and said: — " From Thee cometh
victory, from Thee cometh wisdom, and Thine is the
glory, and I am Thy servant. Blessed art Thou, who
hast given me wisdom : for to Thee I give thanks, O
Lord of our fathers." And so he took the letters, and
went out, and came unto Babylon, and told it all his
brethren. And they praised the God of their fathers,
because He had given them freedom and liberty to go
up, and to build Jerusalem, and the temple which is
called by His name : and they feasted with instruments
of music and gladness seven days.
After this were the principal men of the families
chosen according to their tribes, to go up with their
wives and sons and daughters, with their menservants
and maidservants, and their cattle. And Darius sent
with them a thousand horsemen, till they had brought
them back to Jerusalem safely, and with musical instru-
ments, tabrets and flutes. And all their brethren played,
and he made them go up together with them.
And these are the names of the men which went up,
according to their families among their tribes, after
their several heads. The priests, the sons of Phinees
the son of Aaron : Jesus the son of Josedec, the son of
Saraias, and Joakim the son of Zorobabel, the son of
Salathiel, of the house of David, out of the kindred of
Phares, of the tribe of Judah ; who spake wise sentences
before Darius the king of Persia in the second year of
his reign, in the month Nisan, which is the first month.
And these are they of Jewry that came up from the cap-
tivity, where they dwelt as strangers, whom Nabuchodo-
nosor the king of Babylon had carried away unto
V. 8-25] L ESDRAS S^S
Babylon. And they returned unto Jerusalem, _ and to
the other parts of Jewry, every man to his own city, who
came with Zorobabel, with Jesus, Nehemias, and Zacha-
rias, and Reesaias, Enenius, Mardocheus Beelsarus,
Aspharasus, Reelius, Roimus, and Baana, their guides.
The number of them of the nation, and their governors
sons of Phoros, two thousand an hundred seventy and
two ; the sons of Saphat, four hundred seventy and two :
the sons of Ares, seven hundred fifty and six : the sons
of Pahath Moab, two thousand eight hundred and
twelve : the sons of Elam, a thousand two hundred fifty
and four : the sons of Zathui, nine hundred forty and
five : the sons of Corbe, seven hundred and five : the
sons of Bani, six hundred forty and eight : the sons of
Bebai, six hundred twenty and three : the sons of Sadas,
three thousand two hundred twenty and two : the sons
of Adonikam, six hundred sixty and seven : the sons of
Bagoi, two thousand sixty and six : the sons of Adin,
four hundred fifty and four: the sons of Aterezias,
ninety and two : the sons of Ceilan and Azetas, three-
score and seven : the sons of Azuran, four hundred thirty
and two : the sons of Ananias, an hundred and one : the
sons of Arom, thirty two : and the sons of Bassa, three
hundred twenty and three : the sons of Azephurith, an
hundred and two : the sons of Meterus, three thousand
and five : the sons of Bethlomon, an hundred twenty
and three : they of Netophah, fifty and five : they of
Anathoth, an hundred fifty and eight : they of Bethsa-
mos, forty and two : they of Kiriathiarius, twenty and
five : they of Caphira and Beroth, seven hundred forty
and three : they of Pira, seven hundred : they of Chadias
and Ammidoi, four hundred twenty and two : they of
Cirama and Gabdes, six hundred twenty and one : they
of Macalon, an hundred twenty and two : they of Beto-
lius, fifty and two : the sons of Nephis, an hundred fifty
and six : the sons of Calamolalus and Onus, seven hun-
dred twenty and five : the sons of Jerechus, two hundred
forty and five : the sons of Annaas, three thousand
three hundred and thirty. The priests : the sons of
Jeddu, the son of Jesus, among the sons of Sanasib,
nine hundred seventy and two : the sons of Meruth, a
thousand fifty and two : the sons of Phassaron, a thou-
VOL. II. S
514 I. ESDRAS [v. 26-39
sand forty and seven : the sons of Carme, a thousand
and seventeen. The Levites : the sons of Jessue, and
Cadmiel, and Banuas, and Sudias, seventy and four.
The holy singers : the sons of Asaph, an hundred twenty
and eight. The porters : the sons of Salum, the sons
of Jatal, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Dacobi, the
sons of Teta, the sons of Sami, in all an hundred thirty
and nine. The servants of the temple : the sons of Esau,
the sons of Asipha, the sons of Tabaoth, the sons of
Ceras, the sons of Sud, the sons of Phaleas, the sons of
Labana, the sons of Graba, the sons of Acua, the sons
of Uta, the sons of Cetab, the sons of Agaba, the sons
of Subai, the sons of Anan, the sons of Cathua, the
sons of Geddur, the sons of Airus, the sons of Daisan,
the sons of Noeba, the sons of Chaseba, the sons of
Gazera, the sons of Azia, the sons of Phlnees, the sons
of Azara, the sons of Bastai, the sons of Asana, the
sons of Meani, the sons of Naphisi, the sons of Acub,
the sons of Acipha", the sons of Assur, the sons of Pha-
racim, the sons of Basaloth, the sons of Meeda, the
sons of Coutha, the sons of Charea, the sons of Charcus,
the sons of Aserer, the sons of Thomoi, the sons of
Nasith, the sons of Atipha. The sons of the servants
of Solomon : the sons of Azaphion, the sons of Pharira,
the sons of Jeeli, the sons of Lozon, the sons of Isdael,
the sons of Sapheth, the sons of Hagia, the sons of
Phacareth, the sons of Sabi, the sons of Sarothie, the
sons of Masias, the sons of Gar, the sons of Addus, the
sons of Suba, the sons of Apherra, the sons of Barodis,
the sons of Sabat, the sons of Allom.
All the ministers of the temple, and the sons of the
servants of Solomon, were three hundred seventy and
two. These came up from Thermeleth and Thelersas,
Charaathalar leading them, and Aalar ; neither could
they shew their families, nor their stock, how they were
of Israel : the sons of Ladan, the son of Ban, the sons
of Necodan, six hundred fifty and two. And of the
priests that usurped the ofhce of the priesthood, and
were not found : the sons of Obdia, the sons of Accoz,
the sons of Addus, who married Augia one of the
daughters of Berzelus, and was named after his name.
And when the description of the kindred of these
V. 40-52] LESDRAS 5i5
men was sought in the register and was not found
Tey were removed from executing the oftice of the
priesthood : for unto them said Nehemias and Atharias
^Tt hey should not be partakers of the holy thmgs, td
Sere arose up an high priest clothed with doctrme and
^''so'of Israel, from them of twelve years old and up-
ward, they were all in number forty thousand beside
menservants and womenservants two thousand three
hundred and sixty. Their menservants and handmaids
were seven thousand three hundred forty and seven : the
singing men and singing women, two hundred forty and
five • four hundred thirty and five camels, seven thou-
sand thirty and six horses, two hundred forty and five
mules, five thousand five hundred twenty and five beasts
used to the yoke. And certain of the chief of their
families, when they came to the temple of God that is
in Jerusalem, vowed to set up the house again in its
own place according to their ability, and to give into
the holy treasury of the works a thousand pounds ot
eold, five thousand of silver, and an hundred priestly
vestments. And so dwelt the priests and the Levites
and the people in Jerusalem, and in the country, the
singers also and the porters; and all Israel in their
villages. J u
But when the seventh month was at hand, and when
the children of Israel were every man in his own place,
they came all together with one consent into the open
place of the first gate which is toward the east. Then
stood up Jesus the son of Josedec, and his brethren the
priests, and Zorobabel the son of Salathiel, and his
brethren, and made ready the altar of the God oi Israel,
to ofl^er burnt sacrifices upon it, according as it is ex-
pressly commanded in the book of Moses the man of
God. And there were gathered unto them out of the
other nations of the land, and they erected the altar upon
its own place, because all the nations of the land were
at enmity with them, arid oppressed them; and they
offered sacrifices according to the time, and burnt offer,
ings to the Lord both morning and evening. Also they
held the feast of tabernacles, as it is commanded in the
law, and offered sacrifices daily, as was meet : and after
5i6 I. ESDRAS [v. 53-65
that, the continual oblations, and the sacrifice of the
sabbaths, and of the new moons, and of all holy feasts.
And all they that had made any vow to God began to
offer sacrifices to God from the first day of the seventh
month, although the temple of the Lord was not yet
built. And they gave unto the masons and carpenters
money, meat, and drink, with cheerfulness. Unto them
of Zidon also and Tyre they gave cars, that they should
bring cedar trees from Libanus, which should be brought
by floats to the haven of Joppa, according as it was
commanded them by Cyrus king of the Persians.
And in the second year and second month after his
coming to the temple of God at Jerusalem began Zoro-
babel the son of Salathiel, and Jesus the son of Josedec,
and their brethren, and the priests, and the Levites,
and all they that were come unto Jerusalem out of the
captivity : and they laid the foundation of the house of
God in the first day of the second month, in the second
year after they were come to Jewry and Jerusalem.
And they appointed the Levites from twenty years old
over the works of the Lord. Then stood up Jesus, and
his sons and brethren, and Cadmiel his brother, and the
sons of Madiabun, with the sons of Joda the son of
Eliadun, with their sons and brethren, all Levites, with
one accord setters forward of the business, labouring
to advance the works in the house of God. So the work-
men built the temple of the Lord. And the priests stood
arrayed in their vestments with musical instruments
and trumpets ; and the Levites the sons of Asaph had
cymbals, singing songs of thanksgiving, and praising
the Lord, according as David the king of Israel had
ordained. And they sung with loud voices songs to the
praise of the Lord, because His mercy and glory is for
ever in all Israel. And all the people sounded trumpets,
and shouted with a loud voice, singing songs of thanks-
giving unto the Lord for the rearing up of the house
of the Lord. Also of the priests and Levites, and of the
chief of their families, the ancients who had seen the
former house came to the building of this with weeping
and great crying. But many with trumpets and joy
shouted with loud voice, insomuch that the trumpets
might not be heard for the weeping of the people : yet
V. 66-vi. 6] I. ESDRAS 5i7
the multitude sounded marvellously, so that it was heard
^ Wherefore when the enemies of the tribe of Judah
and Benjamin heard it, they came to know what that
noise of trumpets should mean. And they perceived that
they that were of the captivity did build the temple unto
the Lord God of Israel. So they went to Zorobabel
and Jesus, and to the chief of the families, and said
unto them :-" We will build together with you. For
we likewise, as ye, do obey your Lord and dp sacrifice
unto Him from the days of Azbazareth the king of the
Assyrians, who brought us hither." _ Then Zorobabel
and' Jesus and the chief of the families of Israel said
unto them :— " It is not for us and you to build together
an house unto the Lord our God. We ourselves alone
will build unto the Lord of Israel, according^ as Cyrus
the king of the Persians hath commanded us. But the
heathen of the land lying heavy upon the inhabitants of
Judea, and holding them strait, hindered their build-
ing- and by their secret plots, and popular persuasions
and commotions, they hindered the finishing of the build-
ing all the time that king Cyrus lived : so they were
hindered from building for the space of two years, until
the reign of Darius.
Now in the second year of the reign of Darius, Aggeus
and Zacharias the son of Addo, the prophets, prophesied
unto the Jews in Jewry and Jerusalem in the name of
the Lord God of Israel, which was upon them. Then
stood up Zorobabel the son of Salathiel, and Jesus the
son of Josedec, and began to build the house of the
Lord at Jerusalem, the prophets of the Lord being with
them, and helping them. At the same time came unto
them' Sisinnes the governor of Syria and Phenice, with
Sathrabuzanes and his companions, and said unto them :
— " By whose appointment do ye build this house and
this roof, and perform all the other things? and who
are the workmen that perform these things?" Never-
theless the elders of the Jews obtained favour, because
the Lord had visited the captivity; and they were not
hindered from building, until such time as signification
was given unto Darius concerning them, and an answer
received.
5i8 LESDRAS [vi. 7-21
The copy of the letters which Sisinnes, governor of
Syria and Phenice, and Sathrabuzanes, with their com-
panions, rulers in Syria and Phenice, wrote and sent
unto Darius:— "To king Darius, greeting: Let all
things be known unto our lord the king, that being come
into the country of Judea, and entered into the city of
Jerusalem, we found in the city of Jerusalem the ancients
of the Jews that were of the captivity building an house
unto the Lord, great and new, of hewn and costly
stones, and the timber already laid upon the walls. And
those works are done with great speed, and the work
goeth on prosperously in their hands, and with all glory
and diligence is it made. Then asked we these elders,
saying, By whose commandment build ye this house, and
lay the foundations, of these works? Therefore to the
intent that we might give knowledge unto thee by
writing, we demanded of them who were the chief doers,
and we required of them the names in writing of their
principal men. So they gave us this answer, We are
the servants of the Lord which made heaven and earth.
And as for this house, it was builded many years ago by
a king of Israel great and strong, and was finished.
But when our fathers provoked God unto wrath, and
sinned against the Lord of Israel which is in heaven.
He gave them over into the power of Nabuchodonosor
king of Babylon, of the Chaldees ; who pulled down the
house, and burned it, and carried away the people cap-
tives unto Babylon. But in the first year that king
Cyrus reigned over the country of Babylon Cyrus the
king wrote to build up this house. And the holy vessels
of gold and of silver, that Nabuchodonosor had carried
away out of the house at Jerusalem, and had set them
in his own temple, those Cyrus the king brought forth
again out of the temple at Babylon, and they were
delivered to Zorobabel and to Sanabassarus the ruler,
with commandment that he should carry away the same
vessels, and put them in the temple at Jerusalem; and
that the temple of the Lord should be built in its place.
Then the same Sanabassarus, being come hither, laid
the foundations of the house of the Lord at Jerusalem ;
and from that time to this being still a building, it is
not yet fully ended. Now therefore, if it seem good
vi. 22^32] I. ESDRAS 5<9
\,.Af^A let him sio-nifv unto us thereof.
^\Tn lomm a'nSld kin| Darius to seek arnong the
rerords at Babylon : and so at Ecbatana the palace
whTch isin the c'ountry of Media there^was found a rol
wherein these things were recorded. ^^^ J^/^'^/J^e
nf the reien of Cyrus king Cyrus commanded that tne
house of fhe Lord at Jerusalem should be built again
where they do sacrifice with continual fire : whose height
rhall be sLty cubits, and the breadth sixty cubits, with
hree row^ of hewn' stones, and one row of new wood
of that country; and the expenses thereof to be given
f ^f thP house of king Cyrus : and that the holy
:: sel o?the house of theior'd, both of gold and silver,
Iha Nal uchodonosor took out of the house at Jeru-
saLm and brought to Babylon, should be restored to
S "house at Jerusalem, and be set - ^h^ Pl^e wher^^
thev were before. And also he commanded that bisinnes
he'^gCrnor of Syria and Phenice, and Sathrabuzanes
and tSeir companions, and those which were appointed
?ulers in Syria and Phenice, should be careful not to
meddle with the place, but suffer Zorobabel, the servan
^f the Lord, and governor of Judea, and the elders of
the Jews, to build the house of the Lord in that place.
I have commanded also to have it built up whole again;
and that they look diligently to help those that be of
the captivity of the Jews, till the house of the Lord be
finished : and out of the tribute of Cc^losyna and Phenice
a portion carefully to be given these men for the sacri-
fices of the Lord, that is, to Zorobabel the governor
for bullocks, and rams, and lambs; and also corn, salt
wine, and oil, and that continually every year without
further question, according as the priests that be in
Jerusalem shall signify to be daily spent : that offerings
may be made to the most high God for the kmg and
for'his children, and that they may pray for their lives.
And he commanded that whosoever should transgress,
yea, or make light of any thing afore spoken or written,
out of his own house should a tree be taken, and he
520 I. ESDRAS [vi. 33— vii. 14
thereon be hanged, and all his goods seized for the king.
The Lord therefore, whose name is there called upon,
utterly destroy every king and nation, that stretcheth
out his hand to hinder or endamage that house of the
Lord in Jerusalem. I Darius the king have ordained
that according unto these things it be done with
diligence. "
Then Sisinnes the governor of Coelosyria and Phenice,
and Sathrabuzanes, with their companions, following the
commandments of king Darius, did very carefully over-
see the holy works, assisting the ancients of the Jews
and governors of the temple. And so the holy works
prospered, when Aggeus and Zacharias the prophets
prophesied. And they finished these things by the
commandment of the Lord God of Israel, and with the
consent of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, kings of
Persia. And thus was the holy house finished in the
three and twentieth day of the month Adar, in the sixth
year of Darius king of the Persians. And the children
of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and others that
were of the captivity, that were added unto them, did
according to the things written in the book of Moses,
And to the dedication of the temple of the Lord they
offered an hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four
hundred lambs ; and twelve goats for the sin of all Israel,
according to the number of the chief of the tribes of
Israel. The priests also and the Levites stood arrayed
in their vestments, according to their kindreds, in the
service of the Lord God of Israel, according to the book
of Moses : and the porters at every gate.
And the children of Israel that were of the captivity
held the passover the fourteenth day of the first month,
after that the priests and the Levites were sanctified.
They that were of the captivity were not all sanctified
together : but the Levites were all sanctified together.
And so they offered the passover for all them of the
captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for
themselves. And the children of Israel that came out
of the captivity did eat, even all they that had separ-
ated themselves from the abominations of the people of
the land, and sought the Lord. And they kept the feast
of unleavened bread seven days, making merry before
vii. i5-viii. 13] I. ESDRAS S^i
the Lord, for that He had turned the counsel of the
SL of Assyria toward them, to strengthen then- hands
in the works of the Lord God of Israel.
And after these things, when Artaxerxes the king ot
the Persians reigned, came Esdras the son of Saraias
the son of Ezerias, the son of Helch ah the son of
Salum the son of Sadduc, the son of Achitob, the son
of AmaHas, the son of Ezias,;he son of Meremoth the
son of Zaraias, the son of Savias, the son of Boccas, the
son of Abisum, the son of Phinees, the pon of Eleazar
?Se son of Aa^on the chief priest. This Esdras_ went
up from Babylon, as a scribe, being very 'jady in the
law of Moses, that was given by the God of Israel.
And the king did him honour : for he found grace in
his siffht in all his requests. There went up ^vlth him
also certain of the children of Israel, of the priests, of
the Levites, of the holy singers, porters, and ministers
of the temple, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of
the reign of Artaxerxes, in the fifth month, this was the
king's seventh year; for they went from Babylon in the
first day of the first month, and came to Jerusalem, ac-
cording to the prosperous journey which the Lord gave
them For Esdras had very great skill, so that he
omitted nothing of the law and commandments of the
Lord, but taught all Israel the ordinances and judg-
ments. , . .
Now the copy of the commission, which was written
from Artaxerxes the king, and came to Esdras the priest
and reader of the law of the Lord, is this that followeth :
— " King Artaxerxes unto Esdras the priest and reader
of the law of the Lord sendeth greeting : Having deter-
mined to deal graciously, I have given order, that such
of the nation of the Jews, and of the priests and
Levites, being within our realm, as are willing and
desirous, should go with thee unto Jerusalem. As many
therefore as have a mind thereunto, let them depart
with thee, as it hath seemed good both to me and my
seven friends the counsellors ; that they may look unto
the affairs of Judea and Jerusalem, agreeably to that
which is in the law of the Lord ; and carry the gifts unto
the Lord of Israel to Jerusalem, which I and my friends
have vowed, and all the gold and silver that in the
522 I. ESDRAS [viii. 14-26
country of Babylon can be found, to the Lord in Jeru-
salem, with that also which is given of the people for the
temple of the Lord their God at Jerusalem : and that
silver and gold may be collected for bullocks, rams,
and Iambs, and things thereunto appertaining; to the
end that they may offer sacrifices unto the Lord upon
the altar of the Lord their God, which is in Jerusalem.
And whatsoever thou and thy brethren will do with the
silver and gold, that do, according to the will of thy
God. And the holy vessels of the Lord, which are given
thee for the use of the temple of thy God, which is in
Jerusalem, thou shalt set before thy God in Jerusalem.
And whatsoever thing else thou shalt remember for the
use of the temple of thy God, thou shalt give it out of
the king's treasury. And I king Artaxerxes have also
commanded the keepers of the treasures in Syria and
Phenice, that whatsoever Esdras the priest and the
reader of the law of the most high God shall send for,
they should give it him with speed, to the sum of an
hundred talents of silver, likewise also of wheat even to
an hundred cors, and an hundred pieces of wine, and
other things in abundance. Let all things be performed
after the law of God diligently unto the most high God,
that wrath come not upon the kingdom of the king and
his sons. I command you also, that ye require no tax,
nor any other imposition, of any of the^ priests, or
Levites, or holy singers, or porters, or mmisters of the
temple, or of any that have doings in this ternple, and
that no man have authority to impose any thing upon
them. And thou, Esdras, according to the wisdom of
God ordain judges and justices, that they may judge in
all Syria and Phenice all those that know the law of
thy God; and those that know it not thou shalt teach.
And whosoever shall transgress the law of thy God, and
of the king, shall be punished diligently, whether it be
by death, or other punishment, by penalty of money,
or by imprisonment."
Then said Esdras the scribe: — " Blessed be the only
Lord God of my fathers, who hath put these things into
the heart of the king, to glorify His house that is in
Jerusalem : and hath honoured me in the sight of the
king, and his counsellors, and all his friends and nobles.
viii. 27-47] L ESDRAS 523
Therefore was I encouraged by the help of the Lord my
God, and gathered together men of Israel to go up with
me. And these are the chief according to their families
and several dignities, tliat went up with me from
Babylon in the reign of king Artaxerxes : of the sons
of Phinees, Gerson : of the sons of Ithamar, Gamael :
of the sons of David, Lettus the son of Sechenias : of
the sons of Pharez, Zacharias ; and with him were
counted an hundred and fifty men : of the sons of Pahath
Moab, Eliaonias, the son of Zaraias, and with him two
hundred men : of the sons of Zathoe, Sechenias the son
of Jezelus, and with him three hundred men : of the
sons of Adin, Obeth the son of Jonathan, and with him
two hundred and fifty men : of the sons of Elam, Josias
son of Gotholias, and with him seventy men : of the
sons of Saphatias, Zaraias son of Michael, and with
him threescore and ten men : of the sons of Joab, Aba-
dias son of Jezelus, and with him two hundred and
twelve men : of the sons of Banid, Assalimoth son of
Josaphias, and with him an hundred and threescore
men : of the sons of Babi, Zacharias son of Bebai, and
with him twenty and eight men : of the sons of Astath,
Johannes son of Acatan, and with him an hundred and
ten men : of the sons of Adonikam the last, and these
are the names of them, Eliphalet, Jeuel, and Samaias,
and with them seventy men : of the sons of Bago, Uthi
the son of Istalcurus, and with him seventy men.
" And these I gathered together to the river called
Theras, where we pitched our tents three days : and then
I surveyed them. But when I had found there none of
the priests and Levites, then sent I unto Eleazar, and
Iduel, and Masman, and Alnathan, and Mamaias, and
Joribas, and Nathan, Eunatan, Zacharias, and Mosolla-
mon, principal men and learned. And I bade them that
they should go unto Saddeus the captain, who was in
the place of the treasury : and commanded them that
they should speak unto Daddeus, and to his brethren,
and to the treasurers in that place, to send us such
men as might execute the priests' office in the house
of the Lord. And by the mighty hand of our Lord they
brought unto us skilful men of the sons of Moli the son
of Levi, the son of Israel, Asebebia, and his sons, and
524 I. ESDRAS [viii. 48-62
his brethren, who were eighteen. And Asebia, and
Annuus, and Osaias his brother, of the sons of Channu-
neus, and their sons, were twenty men. And of the
servants of the temple whom David had ordained, and
the principal men for the service of the Levites, to wit,
the servants of the temple, two hundred and twenty,
the catalogue of whose names were shewed. And there
I vowed a fast unto the young men before our Lord, to
desire of Him a prosperous journey both for us and
them that were with us, for our children, and for the
cattle : for I was ashamed to ask the king footmen,
and horsemen, and conduct for safeguard against our
adversaries. For we had said unto the king, that the
power of the Lord our God should be with them that
seek Him, to support them in all ways. And again we
besought our Lord as touching these things, and found
Him favourable unto us. Then I separated twelve of
the chief of the priests, Esebrias, and Assanias, and ten
men of their brethren with them : and I weighed them
the gold, and the silver, and the holy vessels of the
house of our Lord, which the king, and his council, and
the princes, and all Israel, had given. And when I had
weighed it, I delivered unto them six hundred and fifty
talents of silver, and silver vessels of an hundred talents,
and an hundred talents of gold, and twenty golden
vessels, and twelve vessels of brass, even of fine brass,
glittering like gold. And I said unto them. Both ye are
holy unto the Lord, and the vessels are holy, and the
gold and the silver is a vow unto the Lord, the Lord
of our fathers. Watch ye, and keep them till ye deliver
them to the chief of the priests and Levites, and to the
principal men of the families of Israel, in Jerusalem, into
the chambers of the house of our God. So the priests
and the Levites, who had received the silver and the
gold and the vessels, brought them unto Jerusalem, into
the temple of the Lord.
" And from the river Theras we departed the twelfth
day of the first month, and came to Jerusalem by the
mighty hand of our Lord, which was with us : and from
the beginning of our journey the Lord delivered us from
every enemy, and so we came to Jerusalem. And when
we had been there three days, the gold and silver that
viii. 63-77] I. ESDRAS 525
was weighed was delivered in the house of our Lord on
the fourth day unto Marmoth the priest the son of In.
And with him was Eleazar the son of Phinees, and with
them were Josabad the son of Jesu and Moeth the son
of Sabban, Levites : all was delivered them by number
and weight. And all the weight of them was written
up the same hour. Moreover they that were come out
of the captivity offered sacrifice unto the Lord God of
Israel, even twelve bullocks for all Israel, fourscore and
sixteen rams, threescore and twelve lambs, goats for
a peace offering, twelve : all of them a sacrifice to the
Lord. And they delivered the king's commandments
unto the king's stewards, and to the governors of Coelo-
syria and Phenice ; and they honoured the people and
the temple of God.
" Now when these things were done, the rulers came
unto me, and said, The nation of Israel, the princes,
the priests and Levites, have not put away from them
the strange people of the land, nor the pollutions of
the Gentiles, to wit, of the Canaanites, Hittites, Pheres-
ites, Jebusites, and the Moabites, Egyptians, and Edom-
ites. For both they and their sons have married with
their daughters, and the holy seed is mixed with the
strange people of the land ; and from the beginning of
this matter the rulers and the great men have been par-
takers of this iniquity. And as soon as I had heard
these things, I rent my clothes, and the holy garment,
and pulled of¥ the hair from off my head and beard,
and sat me down sad and very heavy. So all they that
were then moved at the word of the Lord God of Israel
assembled unto me, whilst I mourned for the iniquity :
but I sat still full of heaviness until the evening sacri-
fice. Then rising up from the fast with my clothes
and the holy garment rent, and bowing my knees, and
stretching forth my hands unto the Lord, Isald, O Lord,
I am confounded and ashamed before Thy face ; for our
sins are multiplied above our heads, and our ignorances
have reached up unto heaven. For ever since the time
of our fathers we have been and are in great sin, even
unto this day. And for our sins and our fathers' we
with our brethren and our kings and our priests were
given up unto the kings of the earth, to the sword, and
526 I. ESDRAS [viii. 78-92
to captivity, and for a prey with shame, unto this day.
And now in some measure hath mercy been shewed
unto us from Thee, O Lord, that there should be left
us a root and a name in the place of Thy sanctuary ;
and to discover unto us a light in the house of the Lord
our God, and to give us food in the time of our servi-
tude. Yea, when we were in bondage, we were not
forsaken of our Lord ; but He made us gracious before
the kings of Persia, so that they gave us food ; yea, and
honoured the temple of our Lord, and raised up the
desolate Sion, that they have given us a sure abiding
in Jewry and Jerusalem. And now, O Lord, what shall
we say, having these things? for we have transgressed
Thy commandments, which Thou gavest by the hand of
Thy servants the prophets, saying. That the land, which
ye enter into to possess as an heritage, is a land polluted
with the pollutions of the strangers of the land, and
they have filled it with their uncleanness. Therefore
now shall ye not join your daughters unto their sons,
neither shall ye take their daughters unto your sons.
Moreover ye shall never seek to have peace with them,
that ye may be strong, and eat the good things of the
land, and that ye may leave the inheritance of the land
unto your children for evermore. And all that is be-
fallen is done unto us for our wicked works and great
sins : for Thou, O Lord, didst make our sins light, and
didst give unto us such a root : but we have turned back
again to transgress Thy law, and to mingle ourselves
with the uncleanness of the nations of the land. Might-
est not Thou be angry with us to destroy us, till Thou
hadst left us neither root, seed, nor name? O Lord of
Israel, Thou art true : for we are left a root this day.
Behold, now are we before Thee in our iniquities, for
we cannot stand any longer by reason of these things
before Thee. "
And as Esdras in his prayer made his confession,
weeping, and lying flat upon the ground before the
temple, there gathered unto him from Jerusalem a very
great multitude of men and women and children : for
there was great weeping among the multitude. Then
Jechonias the son of Jeelus, one of the sons of Israel,
called out, and said :— " O Esdras, we have sinned
viii. 93-ix. 14] I- ESDRAS 527
against the Lord God, we have married strange women
of the nations of the land, and now is all Israel exalted.
Let us make an oath to the Lord, that we will put away
all our wives, which we have taken of the heathen, with
their children, like as thou hast decreed, and as many as
do obey the law of the Lord. Arise, and put in execu-
tion • for to thee doth this matter appertain, and we
will be with thee : do valiantly." So Esdras arose, and
took an oath of the chief of the priests and Levites of
all Israel to do after these things ; and so they sware.
Then Esdras rising from the court of the temple went
to the chamber of Joanan the son of Eliasib, and re-
mained there, and did eat no meat nor drink water,
mourning for the great iniquities of the multitude. And
there was a proclamation in all Jewry and Jerusalem to
all them that were of the captivity, that they should
be gathered together at Jerusalem ; and that whosoever
met not there within two or three days, according as
the elders that bare rule appointed, their cattle should
be seized to the use of the temple, and himself cast out
from them that were of the captivity.
And in three days were all they of the tribe of Judah
and Benjamin gathered together at Jerusalem the twenti-
eth day of the ninth month. And all the multitude sat
trembling in the broad court of the temple because of
the present foul weather. So Esdras arose up, and said
unto them : — " Ye have transgressed the law in marry-
ing strange wives, thereby to increase the sins of Israel.
And now by confessing give glory unto the Lord God
of our fathers, and do His will, and separate yourselves
from the heathen of the land, and from the strange
women." Then cried the whole multitude, and said
with a loud voice : — " Like as thou hast spoken, so will
we do. But forasmuch as the people are many, and it
is foul weather, so that we cannot stand without,^ and
this is not a work of a day or two, seeing our sin in
these things is spread far : therefore let the rulers of the
multitude stay, and let all them of our habitations that
have strange wives come at the time appointed, and
with them the rulers and judg-es of every place, till we
turn away the wrath of the Lord from us for this
matter." Then Jonathan the son of Azacl and Ezechias
528 I. ESDRAS [ix. 15-34
the son of Theocanus accordingly took this matter upon
them : and Mosollam and Levis and Sabbatheus helped
them. And they that were of the captivity did accord-
ing to all these things.
And Esdras the priest chose unto him the principal
men of their families, all by name : and in the first day
of the tenth month they sat together to examine the
matter. So their cause that held strange wives was
brought to an end in the first day of the first month.
And of the priests that were come together, and had
strange wives, there were found ; of the sons of Jesus
the son of Josedec, and his brethren ; Matthelas, and
Eleazar, and Joribus, and Joadanus. And they gave
their hands to put away their wives, and to offer rams
to make reconcilement for their errors. And of the sons
of Emmer; Ananias, and Zabdeus, and Eanes, and
Sameius, and Hiereel, and Azarias. And of the sons
of Phaisur; Elionas, Massias, Ismael, and Nathanael,
and Ocidelus, and Talsas. And of the Levites ; Jozabad,
and Semis, and Colius, who was called Calitas, and
Patheus, and Judas, and Jonas. Of the holy singers ;
Eleazurus, Bacchurus. Of the porters ; Sallumus, and
Tolbanes. Of them of Israel, of the sons of Phoros ;
Hiermas, and Eddias, and Melchias, and Maelus, and
Eleazar, and Asibias, and Baanias. Of the sons of Ela ;
Matthanias, Zacharias, and Hierielus, and Hieremoth,
and Aedias. And of the sons of Zamoth ; Eliadas, Eli-
simus, Othonlas, Jarimoth, and Sabatus, and Sardeus.
Of the sons of Bebai ; Johannes, and Ananias, and Josa-
bad, and Amatheis. Of the sons of Mani ; Olamus,
Mamuchus, Jedeus, Jasubus, Jasael, and Hieremoth.
And of the sons of Addi ; Naathus, and Moosias, Lacu-
nus, and Naidus, and IMathanias, and Sesthel, Balnuus,
and Manasseas. And of the sons of Annas; Elionas,
and Aseas, and Melchias, and Sabbeus, and Simon Cho-
sameus. And of the sons of Asom ; Altaneus, and
Matthias, and Bannaia, Ellphalat, and Manasses, and
Semei. And of the sons of Maani ; Jeremias, Momdis,
Omaerus, Juel, Mabdai, and Pelias, and Anos, Caraba-
sion, and Enasibus, and Mamnitanaimus, Eliasis, Ban-
nus, Eliali, Samis, Selemias, Nathanias : and of the
sons of Ozora; Sesis, Esril, Azaelus, Samatus, Zambis,
ix. 35-53] I- ESDRAS 529
Tosephus. And of the sons of Ethma; Mazitias, Zaba-
daias, Edes, Juel, Banaias. All these had taken strange
wives, and they put them away with their children. And
the priests and Levites, and they that were of Israel,
dwelt in Jerusalem, and in the country, in the first day
of the seventh month : so the children of Israel were
in their habitations.
And the whole multitude came together with one
accord into the broad place of the holy porch toward
the east: and they spake unto Esdras the priest and
reader, that he would bring the law of Moses, that was
criven of the Lord God of Israel. So Esdras the chief
priest brought the law unto the whole multitude from
man to woman, and to all the priests, to hear the law
in the first day of the seventh month. And he read in
the broad court before the holy porch from morning
unto midday, before both men and women ; and all the
multitude gave heed unto the law. And Esdras^ the
priest and reader of the law stood up upon a pulpit of
wood, which was made for that purpose. And there
stood up by him Mattathias, Sammus, Ananias, Azanas,
Urias, Ezecias, Balasamus, upon the right hand : and
upon his left hand stood Phaldaius, Misael, Melchias,
Lothasubus, and Nabarias. Then took Esdras the booK
of the law before the multitude : for he sat honourably
in the first place in the sight of them all. And when
he opened the law, they stood all straight up. So Esdras
blessed the Lord God most High, the God of hosts.
Almighty. And all the people answered :—" Amen ;
and lifting up their hands they fell to the ground, and
worshipped the Lord. Also Jesus, Anus, Sarabias, Adi-
nus, Jacubus, Sabateas, Auteas, Maianeas, and Calitas,
Aza'rias, and Joazabdus, and Ananias, Biatas, the Levites,
taught the law of the Lord, making them withal to
understand it. Then spake Attharates unto Esdras the
chief* priest and reader, and to the Levites that taught
the multitude, even to all, saying :— " This day is holy
unto the Lord;" (for they all wept when they heard the
law •) "0-0 then, and eat the fat, and drink the sweet,
and send" part to them that have nothing; for this day
is holy unto the Lord : and be not sorrowful ; for the
Lord will bring you to honour." So the Levites pub-
530
I. ESDRAS
[ix. 54, 55
lished all things to the people, saying : — " This day is
holy to the Lord; be not sorrowful." Then went they
their way, every one to eat and drink, .and make merry,
and to give part to them that had nothing, and to make
great cheer ; because they understood the words wherein
they were instructed, and for the which they had been
assembled.
END OF VOL. II
Richard Clay Gr" Sons, Limited, London and Bungay.
^^'
Taylor, Bruce (compiler) BS
889
• AI
Ancient he brew literature 1907.
vol.2
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