2 Chronicles 27

1 Jotham [was] twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also [was] Jerushah, the daughter of Zadok.

Jotham was 25 years old when he became the king of Judah. He ruled from Jerusalem for 16 years. His mother was Jerushah, the daughter of [the priest] Zadok.

2 And he did [that which was] right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Uzziah did: howbeit he entered not into the temple of the LORD. And the people did yet corruptly.

Jotham did many things that pleased Yahweh like his father Uzziah did. He obeyed Yahweh and did things that are right. He did many things that his father Uzziah had done, but he did not burn incense in the temple, like his father had done. However, the people of Judah continued to sin against Yahweh.

3 He built the high gate of the house of the LORD, and on the wall of Ophel he built much.

Jotham’s [workers] rebuilt the Upper Gate of the temple, and they did a lot of work to repair the wall near Ophel [Hill].

4 Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built castles and towers.

They built towns in the hills of Judah, and they built forts and defense towers in the forests.

5 He fought also with the king of the Ammonites, and prevailed against them. And the children of Ammon gave him the same year an hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand measures of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. So much did the children of Ammon pay unto him, both the second year, and the third.

During the time that Jotham was the king of Judah, his army attacked and defeated the army of the Ammon people-group. Then, every year during the next three years, he required the Anmon people-group to pay to him four tons of silver, 60,000 bushels of wheat, and 60,000 bushels of barley.

6 So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.

Jotham faithfully obeyed Yahweh his God, and as a result he became a very powerful king.

7 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, lo, they [are] written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.

A record of everything else that Jotham did during the time that he was the king, including the wars that his army fought, is written in the scroll called ‘[the History of] the Kings of Israel and Judah’.

8 He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.

After Jotham had ruled Judah for 16 years, he died when he was 41 years old.

9 And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.

He was buried in Jerusalem, and his son Ahaz became the king [of Judah].