Azariah Reigns in Judah
1 nIn the twenty-seventh year of oJeroboam king of Israel, pAzariah the son of Amaziah, king of Judah, began to reign. 2 He was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. 3 And he qdid what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. 4 Nevertheless, rthe high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. 5 sAnd the Lord touched the king, so that he was a leper1 to the day of his death, and he lived tin a separate house.2 And uJotham the king’s son was over the household, governing the people of the land. 6 vNow the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the wBook of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 7 xAnd Azariah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David, and Jotham his son reigned in his place.
Zechariah Reigns in Israel
8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in Samaria six months. 9 And he ydid what was evil in the sight of the Lord, as his fathers had done. He did not depart from the zsins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin. 10 Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him and struck him down at Ibleam and put him to death and reigned in his place. 11 Now the rest of the deeds of Zechariah, behold, they are written in the aBook of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 12 (This was the promise of the Lord that he gave to Jehu, b“Your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.” And so it came to pass.)
Shallum Reigns in Israel
13 Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah3 king of Judah, and he reigned one month in Samaria. 14 Then Menahem the son of Gadi came up from cTirzah and came to Samaria, and he struck down Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria and put him to death and reigned in his place. 15 Now the rest of the deeds of Shallum, and the conspiracy that he made, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 16 At that time Menahem sacked Tiphsah and all who were in it and its territory from Tirzah on, because they did not open it to him. Therefore he sacked it, and he dripped open all the women in it who were pregnant.
Menahem Reigns in Israel
17 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem the son of Gadi began to reign over Israel, and he reigned ten years in Samaria. 18 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart all his days from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin. 19 ePul4 the king of Assyria came against the land, and Menahem fgave Pul a thousand talents5 of silver, that he might help him to confirm his hold on the royal power. 20 Menahem exacted the money from Israel, that is, from all the wealthy men, fifty shekels6 of silver from every man, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back and did not stay there in the land. 21 Now the rest of the deeds of Menahem and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 22 And Menahem slept with his fathers, and Pekahiah his son reigned in his place.
Pekahiah Reigns in Israel
23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned two years. 24 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin. 25 And gPekah the son of Remaliah, his captain, conspired against him with fifty men of the people of Gilead, and struck him down in Samaria, in the citadel of the king’s house with Argob and Arieh; he put him to death and reigned in his place. 26 Now the rest of the deeds of Pekahiah and all that he did, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
Pekah Reigns in Israel
27 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned twenty years. 28 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin.
29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel, hTiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and he icarried the people captive to Assyria. 30 Then jHoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah and struck him down and put him to death and reigned in his place, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah. 31 Now 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.
Jotham Reigns in Judah
32 kIn the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, lJotham the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, began to reign. 33 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok. 34 And he mdid what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that his father Uzziah had done. 35 Nevertheless, the high places were not removed. The people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. He built the nupper gate of the house of the Lord. 36 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham and all that he did, are they not written in the oBook of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 37 In those days the Lord began to send pRezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah against Judah. 38 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 place.
Ahaz Reigns in Judah
1 qIn the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, rAhaz the son of Jotham, king of Judah, began to reign. 2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord his God, as his father David had done, 3 but he swalked in the way of the kings of Israel. He even tburned his son as an offering,7 uaccording to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. 4 And he sacrificed and made offerings on the high places and von the hills and under every green tree.
5 wThen Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to wage war on Jerusalem, and they besieged Ahaz but could not conquer him. 6 At that time Rezin the king of Syria recovered xElath for Syria and drove the men of Judah from Elath, and the Edomites came to Elath, where they dwell yto this day. 7 So Ahaz zsent messengers to aTiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. Come up and rescue me from the hand of the king of Syria and from the hand of the king of Israel, who are attacking me.” 8 Ahaz also took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasures of the king’s house and bsent a present to the king of Assyria. 9 And the king of Assyria listened to him. cThe king of Assyria marched up against Damascus and took it, carrying its people captive to Kir, and he killed Rezin.
10 dWhen King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, he saw the altar that was at Damascus. And King Ahaz sent to eUriah the priest a model of the altar, and its pattern, exact in all its details. 11 And Uriah the priest built the altar; in accordance with all that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so Uriah the priest made it, before King Ahaz arrived from Damascus. 12 And when the king came from Damascus, the king viewed the altar. Then the king drew near to the altar and went up on it 13 and burned his burnt offering and his grain offering and poured his drink offering and threw the blood of his peace offerings on the altar. 14 And the fbronze altar that was before the Lord he removed from the front of the house, from the place between his altar and the house of the Lord, and put it on the north side of his altar. 15 And King Ahaz commanded Uriah the priest, saying, “On the great altar burn the gmorning burnt offering and the evening grain offering and the king’s burnt offering and his grain offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their grain offering and their drink offering. And hthrow on it all the blood of the burnt offering and all the blood of the sacrifice, but the bronze altar shall be for me to inquire by.” 16 Uriah the priest did all this, as King Ahaz commanded.
17 And King Ahaz cut off the frames of the istands and removed the jbasin from them, and he took down the ksea8 from off the bronze loxen that were under it and put it on a stone pedestal. 18 And the covered way for the Sabbath that had been built inside the house and the outer entrance for the king he caused to go around the house of the Lord, because of the king of Assyria. 19 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz that he did, are they not written in the mBook of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 20 And Ahaz nslept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David, and oHezekiah his son reigned in his place.
You Must Be Born Again
1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 fThis man came to Jesus1 gby night and said to him, “Rabbi, hwe know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these isigns that you do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is jborn again2 he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born kof water and the Spirit, he cannot lenter the kingdom of God. 6 mThat which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.3 7 nDo not marvel that I said to you, ‘You4 must be born again.’ 8 The wind5 blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? 11 Truly, truly, I say to you, owe speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you6 pdo not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 qNo one has ascended into heaven except he who descended rfrom heaven, sthe Son of Man.7 14 And tas Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be ulifted up, 15 that vwhoever believes in him may have eternal life.8
For God So Loved the World
16 “For God so loved the world,9 wthat he gave his only xSon, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not ysend his Son into the world zto condemn the world, but ain order that the world might be saved through him. 18 bWhoever believes in him is not condemned, but cwhoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed din the name of the only Son of God.
