Immerse: Chronicles Full Volume - Flipbook - Page 98
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CHRONICLES
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| 27:9–28:15
sixteen years. When Jotham died, he was buried in the City of David. And
his son Ahaz became the next king.
Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jeru
salem sixteen years. He did not do what was pleasing in the sight of the
Lord, as his ancestor David had done. Instead, he followed the example
of the kings of Israel. He cast metal images for the worship of Baal. He offered sacrifices in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, even sacrificing his own sons
in the fire. In this way, he followed the detestable practices of the pagan
nations the Lord had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites. He offered sacrifices and burned incense at the pagan shrines and on the hills
and under every green tree.
Because of all this, the Lord his God allowed the king of Aram to defeat
Ahaz and to exile large numbers of his people to Damascus. The armies of
the king of Israel also defeated Ahaz and inflicted many casualties on his
army. In a single day Pekah son of Remaliah, Israel’s king, killed 120,000
of Judah’s troops, all of them experienced warriors, because they had abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors. Then Zicri, a warrior from
Ephraim, killed Maaseiah, the king’s son; Azrikam, the king’s palace commander; and Elkanah, the king’s s econd-in-command. The armies of Israel
captured 200,000 women and children from Judah and seized tremendous
amounts of plunder, which they took back to Samaria.
But a prophet of the Lord named Oded was there in Samaria when
the army of Israel returned home. He went out to meet them and said,
“The Lord, the God of your ancestors, was angry with Judah and let you
defeat them. But you have gone too far, killing them without mercy, and
all heaven is disturbed. And now you are planning to make slaves of these
people from Judah and Jerusalem. What about your own sins against the
Lord your God? Listen to me and return these prisoners you have taken,
for they are your own relatives. Watch out, because now the Lord’s fierce
anger has been turned against you!”
Then some of the leaders of Israel—Azariah son of Jehohanan, Bere
kiah son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah son of Shallum, and Amasa son of
Hadlai—agreed with this and confronted the men returning from battle.
“You must not bring the prisoners here!” they declared. “We cannot afford
to add to our sins and guilt. Our guilt is already great, and the Lord’s fierce
anger is already turned against Israel.”
So the warriors released the prisoners and handed over the plunder
in the sight of the leaders and all the people. Then the four men just
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