2 Chronicles 17

²⁴And Asa rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the city of his father David, and his son Jehoshaphat reigned in his place.

⁵Then Hezekiah worked resolutely to rebuild all the broken sections of the wall and to raise up towers on it. He also built an outer wall and reinforced the supporting terraces of the City of David, and he produced an abundance of weapons and shields.

⁸Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah.

¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

¹⁰Now these were the chiefs of David’s mighty men, who, together with all Israel, bolstered and strengthened his kingdom, according to the word of the Lord concerning Israel.

⁸The Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, for he had become exceedingly powerful.

⁸When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded the prophet, he took courage and removed the detestable idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He then restored the altar of the Lord that was in front of the portico of the Lord’s temple.

¹¹He strengthened their fortifications and put officers in them, with supplies of food, oil, and wine.

¹²He also put shields and spears in all the cities and strengthened them greatly. So Judah and Benjamin belonged to him.

⁵Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem, and he built up cities for defense in Judah.

²And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walked in all the ways of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right or to the left.

¹⁰Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

²²The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you all.

¹¹The Lord of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

⁹Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

²And the Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.

³When his master saw that the Lord was with him and made him prosper in all he did,

²⁸After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves and said to the people, “Going up to Jerusalem is too much for you. Here, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.”

¹²encouraging you, comforting you, and urging you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

⁶Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and decrees of the Lord.

¹⁵Though you prostitute yourself, O Israel, may Judah avoid such guilt! Do not journey to Gilgal, do not go up to Beth-aven, and do not swear on oath, ‘As surely as the Lord lives!’

¹⁹and even Judah did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but lived according to the customs Israel had introduced.

¹⁸And Jehoram walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done. For he married a daughter of Ahab and did evil in the sight of the Lord.

¹Now Jehoshaphat had an abundance of riches and honor, and he allied himself with Ahab by marriage.

³³But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.

¹A song of ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the Lord protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain.

¹¹On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.

¹²So the Lord blessed Job’s latter days more than his first. He owned 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys.

²⁷But some worthless men said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him and brought him no gifts; but Saul remained silent about it.

⁹Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them. For the ways of the Lord are right, and the righteous walk in them but the rebellious stumble in them.

¹Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the Law of the Lord.

³³The high places, however, were not removed; the people had not yet set their hearts on the God of their fathers.

¹⁷The high places were not removed from Israel, but Asa’s heart was fully devoted all his days.

⁴³And Jehoshaphat walked in all the ways of his father Asa; he did not turn away from them, but did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. The high places, however, were not removed; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.

³In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, Josiah began to seek the God of his father David, and in the twelfth year he began to cleanse Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherah poles, the carved idols, and the cast images.

⁴Then in his presence the altars of the Baals were torn down, and he cut to pieces the incense altars that were above them. He shattered the Asherah poles, the carved idols, and the cast images, crushed them to dust, and scattered them over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them.

³To the Levites who taught all Israel and were holy to the Lord, Josiah said: “Put the holy ark in the temple built by Solomon son of David king of Israel. It is not to be carried around on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and His people Israel.

⁹Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also taught the people knowledge; he pondered, searched out, and arranged many proverbs.

¹⁰The Teacher searched to find delightful sayings and to record accurate words of truth.

⁷The Levites—Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah—instructed the people in the Law as they stood in their places.

⁸So they read from the Book of the Law of God, explaining it and giving insight, so that the people could understand what was being read.

³For many years Israel has been without the true God, without a priest to instruct them, and without the law.

¹³On the second day of the month, the heads of all the families, along with the priests and Levites, gathered around Ezra the scribe to study the words of the Law.

¹⁴And they found written in the Law, which the Lord had commanded through Moses, that the Israelites were to dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month,

¹³Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will return to You.

⁸Moreover, Jehoshaphat appointed in Jerusalem some of the Levites, priests, and heads of the Israelite families to judge on behalf of the Lord and to settle disputes. And they lived in Jerusalem.

⁷For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, because he is the messenger of the Lord of Hosts.

¹Many years later, during the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah,

²the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub,

⁴⁶If you had believed Moses, you would believe Me, because he wrote about Me.

²Much in every way. First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.

³⁹You pore over the Scriptures because you presume that by them you possess eternal life. These are the very words that testify about Me,

¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

²⁰and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

¹After Jesus had finished instructing His twelve disciples, He went on from there to teach and preach in their cities.

¹¹If anyone speaks, he should speak as one conveying the words of God. If anyone serves, he should serve with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.

¹⁴and attacked all the cities around Gerar, because the terror of the Lord had fallen upon them. They plundered all the cities, since there was much plunder there.

¹⁴The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the dwellers of Philistia.

¹⁵Then the chiefs of Edom will be dismayed; trembling will seize the leaders of Moab; those who dwell in Canaan will melt away,

⁷When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even the man’s enemies live at peace with him.

²⁴For I will drive out the nations before you and enlarge your borders, and no one will covet your land when you go up three times a year to appear before the Lord your God.

⁹For the eyes of the Lord roam to and fro over all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him. You have acted foolishly in this matter. From now on, therefore, you will be at war.”

⁵As they set out, a terror from God fell over the surrounding cities, so that they did not pursue Jacob’s sons.

⁸The Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, for he had become exceedingly powerful.

¹⁴not including the revenue from the merchants and traders. And all the Arabian kings and governors of the land also brought gold and silver to Solomon.

²David also defeated the Moabites, made them lie down on the ground, and measured them off with a cord. He measured off with two lengths those to be put to death, and with one length those to be spared. So the Moabites became subject to David and brought him tribute.

⁵So the Lord established the kingdom in his hand, and all Judah brought him tribute, so that he had an abundance of riches and honor.

⁴Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder, and he would render to the king of Israel a hundred thousand lambs and the wool of a hundred thousand rams.

²Solomon rebuilt the cities Hiram had given him and settled Israelites there.

³Then Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and captured it.

⁴He also built cities in the hill country of Judah and fortresses and towers in the forests.

⁵Then Hezekiah worked resolutely to rebuild all the broken sections of the wall and to raise up towers on it. He also built an outer wall and reinforced the supporting terraces of the City of David, and he produced an abundance of weapons and shields.

¹Now Jehoshaphat had an abundance of riches and honor, and he allied himself with Ahab by marriage.

²⁷Hezekiah had very great riches and honor, and he made treasuries for his silver, gold, precious stones, spices, shields, and all kinds of valuable articles.

²⁸He also made storehouses for the harvest of grain and new wine and oil, stalls for all kinds of livestock, and pens for the flocks.

⁶Because the land was at peace, Asa built fortified cities in Judah. In those days no one made war with him, because the Lord had given him rest.

⁷So he said to the people of Judah, “Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, with doors and bars. The land is still ours because we have sought the Lord our God. We have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered.

¹⁰Since he had much livestock in the foothills and in the plain, he built towers in the desert and dug many cisterns. And since he was a lover of the soil, he had farmers and vinedressers in the hill country and in the fertile fields.

¹¹Uzziah had an army ready for battle that went out to war by assigned divisions, as recorded by Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the officer under the direction of Hananiah, one of the royal officers.

²⁵Azmaveth son of Adiel was in charge of the royal storehouses. Jonathan son of Uzziah was in charge of the storehouses in the country, in the cities, in the villages, and in the fortresses.

²⁶Ezri son of Chelub was in charge of the workers in the fields who tilled the soil.

¹⁸and on the first day of the second month they assembled the whole congregation and recorded their ancestry by clans and families, counting one by one the names of those twenty years of age or older,

¹When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mobilized the house of Judah and Benjamin—180,000 chosen warriors—to fight against Israel and restore the kingdom to Rehoboam.

³Abijah went into battle with an army of 400,000 chosen men, while Jeroboam drew up in formation against him with 800,000 chosen and mighty men of valor.

⁸Asa had an army of 300,000 men from Judah bearing large shields and spears, and 280,000 men from Benjamin bearing small shields and drawing the bow. All these were mighty men of valor.

⁵And the Lord took him outside and said, “Now look to the heavens and count the stars, if you are able.” Then He told him, “So shall your offspring be.”

¹⁶I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if one could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted.

⁹My heart is with the princes of Israel, with the volunteers among the people. Bless the Lord!

²“When the princes take the lead in Israel, when the people volunteer, bless the Lord.

⁹And the people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given to the Lord freely and wholeheartedly. And King David also rejoiced greatly.

³Your people shall be willing on Your day of battle. Arrayed in holy splendor, from the womb of the dawn, to You belongs the dew of Your youth.

¹²For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.

³For I testify that they gave according to their ability and even beyond it. Of their own accord,

⁴they earnestly pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.

⁸Asa had an army of 300,000 men from Judah bearing large shields and spears, and 280,000 men from Benjamin bearing small shields and drawing the bow. All these were mighty men of valor.

²¹O mountains of Gilboa, may you have no dew or rain, no fields yielding offerings of grain. For there the shield of the mighty was defiled, the shield of Saul, no longer anointed with oil.

²²From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan did not retreat, and the sword of Saul did not return empty.

²He stationed troops in every fortified city of Judah and put garrisons in the land of Judah and in the cities of Ephraim that his father Asa had captured.

¹²He also put shields and spears in all the cities and strengthened them greatly. So Judah and Benjamin belonged to him.

¹²Jehoshaphat grew stronger and stronger, and he built fortresses and store cities in Judah

²³Rehoboam also acted wisely by dispersing some of his sons throughout the districts of Judah and Benjamin, and to all the fortified cities. He gave them abundant provisions and sought many wives for them.