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JUNE 14
king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned twen-
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ty years. And he did evil in the sight of the
LORD; he did not depart from the sins of
Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Is- 16:3 walked in the way of the kings of
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rael sin. In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Israel. This does not necessarily mean that
Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ahaz participated in the calf worship intro-
Ijon, Abel Beth Maachah, Janoah, Kedesh, duced by Jeroboam I at Bethel and Dan, but
Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of that he increasingly brought pagan, idola-
Naphtali; and he carried them captive to As- trous practices into the worship of the Lord in
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syria. Then Hoshea the son of Elah led a con- Jerusalem.These are specified in vv.10–16 and
spiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, parallel those of Jeroboam I in the northern
and struck and killed him; so he reigned in his kingdom. This included idols to Baal (2 Chr.
place in the twentieth year of Jotham the son 28:2).made his son pass through the fire.As
a part of the ritual worship of Molech,the god
of Uzziah.
31 Now the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all of the Moabites, children were sacrificed by
that he did, indeed they are written in the fire (3:27).This horrific practice was continual-
ly condemned in the Old Testament (Lev.
book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 18:21;20:2–5;Deut.18:10;Jer.7:31;19:5;32:35).
32 In the second year of Pekah the son of
Remaliah, king of Israel, Jotham the son of
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Uzziah, king of Judah, began to reign. He drove the men of Judah from Elath. Then the
was twenty-five years old when he became Edomites went to Elath, and dwell there to
king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusa- this day.
lem. His mother’s name was Jerusha the 7 So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-Pileser
daughter of Zadok. And he did what was king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant
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right in the sight of the LORD; he did according and your son. Come up and save me from the
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to all that his father Uzziah had done. How- hand of the king of Syria and from the hand of
ever the high places were not removed; the the king of Israel, who rise up against me.”
people still sacrificed and burned incense on 8 And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was
the high places. He built the Upper Gate of the found in the house of the LORD, and in the
house of the LORD. treasuries of the king’s house, and sent it as a
36 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all present to the king of Assyria. So the king of
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that he did, are they not written in the book of Assyria heeded him; for the king of Assyria
the chronicles of the kings of Judah? In those went up against Damascus and took it, carried
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days the LORD began to send Rezin king of its people captive to Kir, and killed Rezin.
Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah against 10 Now King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet
Judah. So Jotham rested with his fathers, and Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria, and saw an
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was buried with his fathers in the City of Da- altar that was at Damascus; and King Ahaz
vid his father. Then Ahaz his son reigned in sent to Urijah the priest the design of the altar
his place. and its pattern, according to all its workman-
In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son ship. Then Urijah the priest built an altar
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16 of Remaliah, Ahaz the son of Jotham,
2
king of Judah, began to reign. Ahaz was twen-
ty years old when he became king, and he
reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and he did
not do what was right in the sight of the LORD 16:10 the altar. When Ahaz traveled to
his God, as his father David had done. But he Damascus to meet Tiglath-Pileser III, he saw a
3
walked in the way of the kings of Israel; indeed large altar (v. 15) which was most likely
he made his son pass through the fire, accord- Assyrian. Ahaz sent a sketch of this altar to
ing to the abominations of the nations whom Urijah the high priest in Jerusalem, and Urijah
built an altar just like it.The serious iniquity in
the LORD had cast out from before the children this was meddling with and changing,accord-
of Israel. And he sacrificed and burned incense ing to personal taste, the furnishings of the
4
on the high places, on the hills, and under temple, the design for which had been given
every green tree. by God (Ex. 25:40; 26:30; 27:1–8; 1 Chr. 28:19).
5 Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son This was like building an idol in the temple,
of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to Jerusa- done to please the pagan Assyrian king,whom
lem to make war; and they besieged Ahaz but Ahaz served instead of God.
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could not overcome him. At that time Rezin
king of Syria captured Elath for Syria, and
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