| 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 armor; |
| 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 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, They 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 kinsfolk, 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 Ahaziah 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 Jehonadab the son of Rechab 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 Baal a little; but Jehu shall serve him much. |
| 19 | Now therefore call unto me all
the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his 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 Baal. And
they proclaimed it. |
| 21 |
And Jehu sent through all Israel: and all the worshippers of Baal 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 Baal. And he brought
them forth vestments. |
| 23 |
And Jehu went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into the house of Baal, and
said unto the worshippers of Baal, 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 Baal. |
|
26 | And they brought forth the images out of the house of Baal, and
burned them. |
| 27 | And they
brake down the image of Baal, and brake down the house of Baal, and made it a
draught house unto this day. |
| 28
| Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel. |
|
29 | Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat,
who made Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden
calves that were in Bethel, 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 Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin. |
| 32 | In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and
Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel; |
|
33 | From Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the
Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the
river Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan. |
|
34 | Now the rest of the acts of Jehu, and all that he did, and all
his might, are they 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 Jehoahaz his son
reigned in his stead. |
| 36 |
And the time that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty and eight
years. |
