Holy Bible
(King James Version)
Second
Kings: Chapter 10
1. AND Ahab had seventy sons
in Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters, and sent to Samaria, unto the
rulers of Jezreel, to the elders, and to them that brought up Ahab's
children, saying,
2. Now as soon as this letter cometh to you, seeing your master's sons
are with you, and there are with you chariots and horses, a fenced city
also, and amour;
3. Look even out the best and meetest of your master's sons, and set him
on his father's throne, and fight for your master's house.
4. But they were exceedingly afraid, and said, Behold, two kings stood
not before him: how then shall we stand?
5. And he that was over the house, and he that was over the city, the
elders also, and the bringers up of the children, sent to Jehu, saying,
We are thy servants, and will do all that thou shalt bid us; we will not
make any king: do thou that which is good in thine eyes.
6. Then he wrote a letter the second time to them, saying, If ye be mine,
and if ye will hearken unto my voice, take ye the heads of the men of
your master's sons, and come to me to Jezreel by to-morrow this time.
Now the king's sons, being seventy persons, were with the great men of
the city, which brought them up.
7. And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the
king's sons, and slew seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets,
and sent him them to Jezreel.
8. And there came a messenger, and told him, saying, Thy have brought
the heads of the king's sons. And he said, Lay ye them in two
heaps at the entering in of the gate until the morning.
9. And it came to pass in the morning, that he went out, and stood, and
said to all the people, Ye be righteous: behold, I conspired against my
master, and slew him: but who slew all these?
10. Know now that there shall fall unto the earth nothing of the word of
the LORD, which the LORD spake concerning the house of Ahab: for the
LORD hath done that which he spake by his servant Elijah.
11. So Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and
all his great men, and his kinsfolks, and his priests, until he left him
none remaining.
12. And he arose and departed, and came to Samaria. And as he was
at the shearing house in the way,
13. Jehu met with the brethren of A-ha-zi-ah king of Judah, and said,
who are ye? And they answered, We are the brethren of Ahaziah; and
we go down to salute the children of the king and the children of the
queen.
14. And he said, Take them alive. And they took them alive, and
slew them at the pit of the shearing house, even two and forty men;
neither left he any of them.
15. And when he was departed thence, he lighted on Je-hon-a-dab the son
of Re-chab coming to meet him: and he saluted him, and said to him, Is
thine heart right, as my heart is with thy heart? And Jehonadab
answered, It is. If it be, give me thine hand. And he gave
him his hand; and he took him up to him into the chariot.
16. And he said, Come with me, and see my zeal for the LORD. So
they made him ride in his chariot.
17. And when he came to Samaria, he slew all that remained unto Ahab in
Samaria, till he had destroyed him, according to the saying of the LORD,
which he spake to Elijah.
18. And Jehu gathered all the people together, and said unto them, Ahab
served Ba-al a little; but Jehu shall serve him much.
19. Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Ba-al, all his
servants, and all the priests; let none be wanting: for I have a great
sacrifice to do to Baal; whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live.
But Jehu did it in subtilty, to the intent that he might destroy the
worshippers of Baal.
20. And Jehu said, Proclaim a solemn assembly for Ba-al. And they
proclaimed it.
21. And Jehu sent through all Israel: and all the worshippers of Ba-al
came, so that there was not a man left that came not. And they
came into the house of Baal; and the house of Baal was full from one end
to another.
22. And he said unto him that was over the vestry, Bring forth vestments
for all the worshippers of Ba-al. And he brought them forth
vestments.
23. And Jehu went, and Je-hon-a-dab the son of Re-chab, into the house
of Ba-al, Search, and look that there be here with you none of the
servants of the LORD, but the worshippers of Baal only.
24. And when they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings, Jehu
appointed fourscore men without, and said, If any of the men whom I have
brought into your hands escape, he that letteth him go, his life shall
be for the life of him.
25. And it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of offering the
burnt offering, that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains, Go in,
and slay them; let none come forth. And they smote them with the
edge of the sword; and the guard and the captains cast them out, and
went to the city of the house of Ba-al.
26. And they brought forth the images out of the house of Ba-al. and
burned them.
27. And they brake down the image of Ba-al, and brake down the house of
Baal, and made it a draught house unto this day.
28. Thus Jehu destroyed Ba-al out of Israel.
29. Howbeit from the sins of Jer-o-bo-am the son of Nebat, who made
Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden
calves that were in Beth-el, and that were in Dan.
30. And the LORD said unto Jehu, Because thou hast done well in
executing that which is right in mine eyes, and hast done unto the house
of Ahab according to all that was in mine heart, thy children of the
fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.
31. But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel
with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jer-o-bo-am,
which made Israel to sin.
32. In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Ha-za-el smote
them in all the coasts of Israel;
33. From Jordan eastward, all the land of Gil-e-ad, the Gadites, and the
Reubenites, and the Ma-nas-sites, from A-ro-er, which is by the river
Arnon, even Gilead and Ba-shan.
34. Now the rest of the acts of Jehu, and all that he did, and all his
might, are thy not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of
Israel?
35. And Jehu slept with his fathers: and they buried him in Samaria.
And Je-ho-a-haz his son reigned in his stead.
36. And the time that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty and
eight years.
May 10 Daily reading schedule..
go to chapter 11
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Art by: Penny Parker. Visit her site HERE
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