< 2 Kings 16 >
1 In the seventeenth year of Pekah son of Remaliah, began Ahaz son of Jotham king of Judah to reign.
2 Twenty years old, was Ahaz when he began to reign, and, sixteen years, reigned he in Jerusalem. And he did not that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh his God, like David his father;
3 but walked in the way of the kings of Israel, —moreover also, me made, his son, pass through the fire, according to the abominable practices of the nations, whom Yahweh dispossessed from before the sons of Israel;
4 and he offered sacrifice and burned incense in the high places, and on the hills, —and under every green tree.
5 then, came up Rezin king of Syria, and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to make war, —and they laid siege against Ahaz, but could not overcome [him].
6 At that time, Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath, to Syria, and wholly cleared out the Jews from Eloth, —and, the Syrians, entered Elath, and have dwelt there, unto this day.
7 So Ahaz sent messengers unto Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, Thy servant and thy son, I am, —Come up and save me, out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, who are rising up against me.
8 And Ahaz took the silver and the gold that was found in the house of Yahweh, and in the treasuries of the house of the king, —and sent them to the king of Assyria, as a bribe.
9 So the king of Assyria hearkened unto him, and the king of Assyria came up unto Damascus, and seized it, and carried away the people thereof captive to Kir, —and put Rezin, to death.
10 So then King Ahaz went to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, in Damascus, and saw the altar which was in Damascus, —and King Ahaz, sent unto Urijah the priest, a likeness of the altar, and a model thereof, according to all the workmanship thereof;
11 and Urijah the priest built an altar, —according to all that King Ahaz sent from Damascus, so, did Urijah the priest make it, by the time King Ahaz came from Damascus.
12 And, when the king came from Damascus, then the king saw the altar, —so the king drew near unto the altar, and caused offerings to ascend thereupon.
13 And he made perfume with his ascending-sacrifice, and with his meal-offering, and poured out his drink-offering, —and dashed the blood of the peace-offerings which he had, upon the altar.
14 And, the altar of bronze which was before Yahweh, he brought away from the forefront of the house, from between the altar, and the house of Yahweh, —and put it at the side of the altar northward.
15 And King Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying—Upon the great altar, make thou perfume with the ascending-sacrifice of the morning, and with the meal-offering of the evening, and with the ascending-sacrifice of the king and with his meal-offering, and with the ascending-sacrifice of all the people of the land, and their meal-offering and their drink-offering, and, all the blood of the ascending-offering, and all the blood of the [peace] offering, thereupon, shalt thou dash, —but, the altar of bronze, shall be for me to inquire [into].
16 So Urijah the priest did according to all that King Ahaz commanded.
17 And King Ahaz cut off the side walls of the stands, and took away from off them the laver, and, the sea, took he down from off the oxen of bronze, which were under it, —and set it on a pavement of stones.
18 Also, the covered walk for the Sabbath, which they had built in the house, and the outer entrance for the king, he changed in the house of Yahweh, —because of the king of Assyria.
19 Now, the rest of the story of Ahaz, what he did, is, it, not written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
20 And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers, in the city of David, —and, Hezekiah his son, reigned, in his stead.