2 Paralipomenon 25

¹Five and twenty years old was Amasias when he began to reign, and he reigned nine & twenty years in Jerusalem, the name of his mother was Ioadan of Jerusalem.

²And he did good in the sight of our Lord: but yet not in a perfect heart.

³And when he saw his Kingdom strengthened, he put to death the servants, that had slain the king his father,

⁴but their children he slew not, as it is written in the Book of the law of Moyses, where our Lord commanded, saying: The fathers shall not be slain for the children, nor the children for their fathers, but every one shall die in his own sin.

⁵Amasias therefore gathered together Juda, and appointed them by families, and tribunes, and centurions, in all Juda, & Benjamin, and he numbered from twenty years upward, & found three hundred thousand of young men that went forth to battle, and held spear and shield.

⁶He hired also for wages of Israel an hundred thousand strong men, for an hundred talents of silver.

⁷But a man of God came to him, and said: O king, let not the host of Israel go forth with thee, for our Lord is not with Israel, and all the children of Ephraim:

⁸and if thou think that battles consist in the force of an army, God will make thee to be overcome of the enemies: for it pertaineth to God both to help, and to put to flight.

⁹And Amasias said to the man of God: What shall become then of the hundred talents, which I have given the soldiers of Israel? And the man of God answered him: Our Lord hath whereby he is able to give thee much more than this.

¹⁰Amasias therefore separated the host, that came to him out of Ephraim, that they should return into their place: but they being wrath exceedingly against Juda, returned into their country.

¹¹Moreover Amasias brought forth his people confidently, and went into the Vale of salt pits, and struck the children of Seir, ten thousand.

¹²And other ten thousand men did the children of Juda take, and bring to the steep of a certain rock, and cast them down headlong from the top, who burst in sunder every one.

¹³But that army which Amasias had sent back, from going with him to battle, was spread in the cities of Juda, from Samaria unto Bethhoron, and killing three thousand took away a great prey.

¹⁴But Amasias after the slaughter of the Idumeans, set up the gods of the children of Seir, which he had brought thence, for his gods, & adored them, and burnt incense to them.

¹⁵For which thing our Lord being angry against Amasias, sent a Prophet unto him, which should say to him: Why hast thou adored gods, that have not delivered their own people out of thy hand?

¹⁶And when he spake these things, he answered him: Art thou the king's counseller? Be quiet, lest I kill thee. And the Prophet departing, said: I know that God is minded to kill thee, because thou hast done this evil, & besides hast not agreed to my counsel.

¹⁷Therefore Amasias the king of Juda taking very ill counsel, sent to Joas the son of Joachaz the son of Jehu, the king of Israel, saying: Come, let us see one another.

¹⁸But he sent back the messengers, saying: A thistle that is in Libanus sent to a cedar of Libanus, saying: Give thy daughter to my son to wife: & behold the beasts that were in the wood of Libanus passed, and trod down the thistle.

¹⁹Thou hast said: I have strucken Edom, and therefore thy heart is extolled into pride, sit in thy house, why dost thou provoke evil against thee, that both thou mayest fall, and Juda with thee.

²⁰Amasias would not hear, because it was our Lord's will, that he should be delivered into the hands of the enemies for the gods of Edom.

²¹Joas therefore the king of Israel went up, and they gave themselves one the sight of the other: and Amasias the king of Juda was in Bethsames of Juda:

²²and Juda fell before Israel, and fled into their tabernacles.

²³Moreover Joas the king of Israel in Bethsames took Amasias the king of Juda, the son of Joas, the son of Joachaz, and brought him into Jerusalem: and destroyed the wall thereof from the gate of Ephraim, to the gate of the corner, four hundred cubits.

²⁴All the gold also, and silver, and all the vessels, that he found in the house of God, and which Obededom in the treasures also of the king's house, moreover he brought back the sons of the hostages into Samaria.

²⁵And Amasias the son of Joas the king of Juda lived, after that Joas died the son of Joachaz the king of Israel fifteen years.

²⁶But the rest of the words of Amasias the first and the last are written in the Book of the kings of Juda and Israel.

²⁷Who after he revolted from our Lord, they lay in wait against him in Jerusalem. And when he had fled into Lachis, they sent, and slew him there.

²⁸And carrying him back upon horses, buried him with his fathers in the City of David.