2 Kings 9:14-10:25

New American Standard Bible 1995

Jehoram (Joram) Is Assassinated

¹⁴ So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. ^(A)Now Joram ^[a]with all Israel was ^[b]defending Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Aram, ¹⁵ but ^(B)King ^[c]Joram had returned to Jezreel to be healed of the wounds which the Arameans had ^[d]inflicted on him when he fought with Hazael king of Aram. So Jehu said, “If this is your mind, then let no one escape or ^[e]leave the city to go tell it in Jezreel.” ¹⁶ Then Jehu rode in a chariot and went to Jezreel, for Joram was lying there. ^(C)Ahaziah king of Judah had come down to see Joram.

¹⁷ Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel and he saw the ^[f]company of Jehu as he came, and said, “I see a ^[g]company.” And Joram said, “Take a horseman and send him to meet them and let him say, ‘Is it peace?’” ¹⁸ So a horseman went to meet him and said, “Thus says the king, ‘Is it peace?’” And Jehu said, “^(D)What have you to do with peace? Turn behind me.” And the watchman ^[h]reported, “The messenger came to them, but he did not return.” ¹⁹ Then he sent out a second horseman, who came to them and said, “Thus says the king, ‘Is it peace?’” And Jehu ^[i]answered, “What have you to do with peace? Turn behind me.” ²⁰ The watchman ^[j]reported, “He came even to them, and he did not return; and ^(E)the driving is like the driving of ^(F)Jehu the son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously.”

²¹ Then ^[k]Joram said, “^[l]Get ready.” And they made his chariot ready. ^[m](G)Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu and found him in the ^[n](H)property of Naboth the Jezreelite. ²² When ^[o]Joram saw Jehu, he said, “Is it peace, Jehu?” And he ^[p]answered, “What peace, ^(I)so long as the harlotries of your mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many?” ²³ So ^[q]Joram ^[r]reined about and fled and said to Ahaziah, “^(J)There is treachery, O Ahaziah!” ²⁴ And ^(K)Jehu ^[s]drew his bow with his full strength and ^[t]shot ^[u]Joram between his arms; and the arrow went ^[v]through his heart and he sank in his chariot. ²⁵ Then Jehu said to Bidkar his officer, “Take him up and ^(L)cast him into the ^[w]property of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite, for I remember when ^[x]you and I were riding together after Ahab his father, that the ^(M)Lord laid this ^(N)oracle against him: ²⁶ ‘Surely ^(O)I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons,’ says the Lord, ‘and ^(P)I will repay you in this ^[y]property,’ says the Lord. Now then, take and cast him into the ^[z]property, according to the word of the Lord.”

Jehu Assassinates Ahaziah

^27 (Q)When Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. And Jehu pursued him and said, “^[aa]Shoot him too, in the chariot.” So they shot him at the ascent of Gur, which is at ^(R)Ibleam. But he fled to Megiddo and died there. ^28 (S)Then his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem and buried him in his grave with his fathers in the city of David.

²⁹ Now in ^(T)the eleventh year of Joram, the son of Ahab, Ahaziah became king over Judah.

³⁰ When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it, and ^(U)she painted her eyes and adorned her head and looked out the window. ³¹ As Jehu entered the gate, she said, “^(V)Is it ^[ab]well, Zimri, ^[ac]your master’s murderer?” ³² Then he lifted up his face to the window and said, “Who is on my side? Who?” And two or three officials looked down at him.

Jezebel Is Slain

³³ 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 trampled her under foot. ³⁴ When he came in, he ate and drank; and he said, “See now to ^(W)this cursed woman and bury her, for ^(X)she is a king’s daughter.” ³⁵ They went to bury her, but they found nothing more of her than the skull and the feet and the palms of her hands. ³⁶ Therefore they returned and told him. And he said, “This is the word of the Lord, which He spoke by His servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ‘^(Y)In the ^[ad]property of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel; ³⁷ and ^(Z)the corpse of Jezebel will be as dung on the face of the field in the ^[ae]property of Jezreel, so they cannot say, “This is Jezebel.”’”

Judgment upon Ahab’s House

10 Now Ahab had seventy sons in ^(AA)Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria, to the rulers of Jezreel, the elders, and to the guardians of the children of Ahab, saying, ² “Now, ^(AB)when this letter comes to you, since your master’s sons are with you, ^[af]as well as the chariots and horses and a fortified city and the weapons, ³ select the best and ^[ag]fittest of your master’s sons, and set him on his father’s throne, and fight for your master’s house.” ⁴ But they feared greatly and said, “Behold, ^(AC)the two kings did not stand before him; how then can we stand?” ⁵ And the one who was over the household, and he who was over the city, the elders, and the guardians of the children, sent word to Jehu, saying, “^(AD)We are your servants, all that you say to us we will do, we will not make any man king; do what is good in your sight.” ⁶ Then he wrote a letter to them a second time saying, “If you are on my side, and you will listen to my voice, take the heads of the men, your master’s sons, and come to me at Jezreel tomorrow about this time.” Now the king’s sons, seventy persons, were with the great men of the city, who were rearing them. ⁷ When the letter came to them, they took the king’s sons and ^(AE)slaughtered them, seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets, and sent them to him at Jezreel. ⁸ When the messenger came and told him, saying, “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons,” he said, “Put them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until morning.” ⁹ Now in the morning he went out and stood and said to all the people, “You are ^[ah]innocent; behold, ^(AF)I conspired against my master and killed him, but ^(AG)who ^[ai]killed all these? ¹⁰ Know then that ^(AH)there shall fall to the earth nothing of the word of the Lord, which the Lord spoke concerning the house of Ahab, for the Lord has done ^(AI)what He spoke ^[aj]through His servant Elijah.” ¹¹ So Jehu ^[ak]killed all who remained of the house of Ahab in ^(AJ)Jezreel, and all his great men and his acquaintances and his priests, until he left him without a survivor.

¹² Then he arose and departed and went to Samaria. On the way while he was at ^[al]Beth-eked of the shepherds, ^13 (AK)Jehu ^[am]met the ^[an]relatives of Ahaziah king of Judah and said, “Who are you?” And they ^[ao]answered, “We are the ^[ap]relatives of Ahaziah; and we have come down ^[aq]to greet the sons of the king and the sons of the queen mother.” ¹⁴ He said, “Take them alive.” So they took them alive and killed them at the pit of Beth-eked, forty-two men; and he left none of them.

¹⁵ Now when he had departed from there, he ^[ar]met ^(AL)Jehonadab the son of ^(AM)Rechab coming to meet him; and he ^[as]greeted him and said to him, “Is your heart right, as my heart is with your heart?” And Jehonadab ^[at]answered, “It is.” Jehu said, “If it is, ^(AN)give me your hand.” And he gave him his hand, and he took him up to him into the chariot. ¹⁶ He said, “Come with me and ^(AO)see my zeal for the Lord.” So ^[au]he made him ride in his chariot. ¹⁷ When he came to Samaria, ^(AP)he ^[av]killed all who remained to Ahab in Samaria, until he had destroyed him, ^(AQ)according to the word of the Lord which He spoke to Elijah.

Jehu Destroys Baal Worshipers

¹⁸ Then Jehu gathered all the people and said to them, “^(AR)Ahab served Baal a little; Jehu will serve him much. ¹⁹ Now, ^(AS)summon all the prophets of Baal, all his worshipers and all his priests; let no one be missing, for I have a great sacrifice for Baal; whoever is missing shall not live.” But Jehu did it in ^[aw]cunning, so that he might destroy the worshipers of Baal. ²⁰ And Jehu said, “^(AT)Sanctify a solemn assembly for Baal.” And ^(AU)they proclaimed it. ²¹ Then Jehu sent ^[ax]throughout Israel and all the worshipers of Baal came, so that there was not a man left who did not come. And when they went into ^(AV)the house of Baal, the house of Baal was filled from one end to the other. ²² He said to the one who was ^[ay]in charge of the wardrobe, “Bring out garments for all the worshipers of Baal.” So he brought out garments for them. ²³ Jehu went into the house of Baal with Jehonadab the son of Rechab; and he said to the worshipers of Baal, “Search and see that there is here with you none of the servants of the Lord, but only the worshipers of Baal.” ²⁴ Then they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings.

Now Jehu had stationed for himself eighty men outside, and he had said, “^(AW)The one who permits any of the men whom I bring into your hands to escape ^[az]shall give up his life in exchange.”

²⁵ Then it came about, as soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, that Jehu said to the ^[ba](AX)guard and to the royal officers, “^(AY)Go in, ^[bb]kill them; let none come out.” And they ^[bc]killed them with the edge of the sword; and the ^[bd]guard and the royal officers threw them out, and went to the ^[be]inner room of the house of Baal.