1
And Ahab had◦ seventy sons in Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria, to▵ the princes of Jezreel, the elders, and to▵ those faithful to Ahab, saying,
2
And now when this letter comes to▵ you, and the sons of your lord are with◦ you, and there are with◦ you the chariots and the horses and the fortified city and the arsenal;
3
then you shall see one who is good and upright from the sons of your lord, and shall set him on the throne of his father, and you shall fight for▵ the house of your lord.
4
But they feared most exceedingly, and said, Behold, the two kings stood not before him; and how◦ shall we◦ stand?
5
And he who was over the house, and he who was over the city, and the elders, and the faithful, sent to▵ Jehu, saying, We◦ are thy servants, and all that thou shalt say unto▵ us we will do; we will not make a man◦ be··king; do that which is good in thine eyes.
6
And he wrote them a letter the second time, saying, If you◦ are for me, and if you◦ will hearken unto my voice, take ye the heads of the men◦ of the sons of your lord, and come to▵ me about this time tomorrow to Jezreel. And the sons of the king, seventy men◦, were with the great ones of the city who brought them up.
7
And it was, when the letter came to▵ them, that they took the king’s sons and slew the seventy men◦ and set their heads in containers, and sent to▵ him, to Jezreel.
8
And the messenger came and told him, saying, They have brought the heads of the sons of the king. And he said, Set them in two piles at the entrance of the gate until the morning.
9
And it was, in the morning, that he went··out, and stood, and said to▵ all the people, You◦ are just; behold, I◦ conspired against my lord, and killed him; but who smote all these?
10
Know then◦ that there shall fall upon the earth nothing of the word of Jehovah, which Jehovah spoke concerning the house of Ahab; and Jehovah has done that which He spoke by the hand of His servant Elijah◦.
11
And Jehu smote all who were··left to the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great ones and those he knew well, and his priests, until he left for him no survivor.
12
And he arose and came and went to Samaria. He◦ was at the binding-house of the shepherds in the way;
13
and Jehu found the brothers of Ahaziah◦ king of Judah, and said, Who are you◦? And they said, We are the brothers of Ahaziah◦, and we go··down to ask peace of the sons of the king and the sons of the great··lady.
14
And he said, Catch them alive. And they caught them alive; and they slaughtered them at▵ the pit of the binding-house, forty and two men◦; and they left not a man◦ of them◦.
15
And he went from there and found Jehonadab the son of Rechab meeting him; and he blessed him, and said to▵ him, Is◦ thy heart upright, as◦ my heart is with thy heart? And Jehonadab said, It··is. And if it be, give me thy hand. And he gave his hand; and he brought· him ·up into▵ his chariot.
16
And he said, Go with◦ me, and see my zeal for Jehovah. And he made him ride in his chariot.
17
And he came··into Samaria and smote all that was left to Ahab in Samaria until he had blotted· him ·out, according··to the word of Jehovah, which he spoke to▵ Elijah◦.
18
And Jehu brought··together all the people, and said unto▵ them, Ahab served Baal a··little; Jehu will serve him much.
19
And now, call to▵ me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests; let not a man◦ be missed; for I have a great sacrifice to Baal; anyone who is missed, he shall not live. But Jehu did it with the intent to supplant, so··that he might make· the servants of Baal ·perish.
20
And Jehu said, Sanctify a day of restraint* for Baal. And they proclaimed it.
21
And Jehu sent into all Israel, and all the servants of Baal came, and there was not a man◦ left who came not. And they came··into the house of Baal; and the house of Baal was··filled from end to end*.
22
And he said unto him who was over the vestry, Bring··out the clothing for all the servants of Baal. And he brought· them ·forth clothes.
23
And Jehu and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, came··into the house of Baal; and he said unto the servants of Baal, Search and see, lest there··be here with you any of the servants of Jehovah, but◦ servants of Baal alone.
24
And they came··in to make sacrifices and burnt··offerings; and Jehu had set for himself eighty men◦ outside, and said, The man◦ who escapes from the men◦ whom I◦ bring into your hands, his soul shall be instead··of his soul.
25
And it was, as he completed making the burnt··offering, that Jehu said to the runners and to the third leaders, Come··in, smite, let no◦ man◦ Come··out. And they smote them with the mouth of the sword. And the runners and the third leaders cast them out, and went to◦ the city of the house of Baal.
26
And they brought··out the statues of the house of Baal, and they burned· them ·up.
27
And they tore··down the statue of Baal, and they tore··down the house of Baal, and set it for an out house even··to today.
28
And Jehu blotted··out Baal from Israel.
29
Only from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin, Jehu turned· not ·aside from following after them: the calves of gold that were in Bethel and that were in Dan.
30
And Jehovah said unto▵ Jehu, Because thou hast done··well to do that which is upright in My eyes, and thou hast done to the house of Ahab all that is in My heart, thy sons of the fourth generation shall sit for thee on the throne of Israel.
31
But Jehu did not take··heed to walk◦ in the law of Jehovah, the God of Israel, with all his heart; he turned· not ·aside from the sins of Jeroboam, who made Israel to sin.
32
In those◦ days Jehovah began to take··the··edges··off Israel; and Hazael smote them on every border of Israel;
33
from the Jordan of the rising◦ of the sun, all the land of Gilead, the Gadite and the Reubenite, and the Manassite; from Aroer, which is by◦ the brook of Arnon, and Gilead and Bashan.
34
And the remaining words concerning Jehu, and all that he did, and all his might, are they◦ not written in the book of the words concerning the days of the kings of Israel?
35
And Jehu lay··down with his fathers; and they buried him in Samaria. And Jehoahaz his son reigned in· his ·stead.
36
And the days that Jehu reigned over Israel were twenty and eight years in Samaria.
