1 Agas was twintig jaar oud toe hy koning geword het, en sestien jaar het hy in Jerusalem geregeer en nie gedoen wat reg was in die oë van die HERE soos sy vader Dawid nie.

2 Maar hy het gewandel in die weë van die konings van Israel en selfs gegote beelde vir die Ba„ls gemaak.

3 Hy het self ook offerrook in die dal van die seun van Hinnom laat opgaan en sy seuns met vuur verbrand, volgens die gruwels van die nasies wat die HERE voor die kinders van Israel uit verdryf het.

4 Hy het ook geoffer en rook laat opgaan op die hoogtes en op die heuwels en onder elke groen boom.

5 Daarom het die HERE sy God hom oorgegee in die hand van die koning van Aram, en hulle het hom verslaan en 'n groot menigte gevangenes van hom weggevoer en na Damaskus gebring. En hy is ook oorgegee in die hand van die koning van Israel, en die het hom verslaan, 'n groot slag.

6 Peka, die seun van Rem lia, het naamlik in Juda op een dag honderd en twintig duisend gedood, almal dapper manne, omdat hulle die HERE, die God van hulle vaders, verlaat het.

7 En Sigri, 'n held van Efraim, het Ma„s,ja, die seun van die koning, en Asr¡kam, die bevelhebber van die paleis, en lkana, die tweede onder die koning, gedood.

8 En die kinders van Israel het van hulle broers twee honderd duisend vroue, seuns en dogters as gevangenes weggevoer, en ook 'n groot buit van hulle geroof en die buit na Samar¡a gebring.

9 En daar was 'n profeet van die HERE met die naam van Oded; en hy het uitgegaan om die leër te ontmoet wat aan kom was na Samar¡a, en aan hulle gesê: Kyk, deur die grimmigheid van die HERE, die God van julle vaders, oor Juda het Hy hulle in julle hand oorgegee, sodat julle onder hulle gemoor het met 'n woede wat tot aan die hemel raak.

10 En nou dink julle om die kinders van Juda en Jerusalem aan julle as slawe en slavinne onderdanig te maak. Wat julle betref, is daar nie by julle net skulde teenoor die HERE julle God nie?

11 Luister dan nou na my en laat die gevangenes wat julle van jul broers weggevoer het, teruggaan; want die toorngloed van die HERE is op julle!

12 Toe het daar manne uit die hoofde van die kinders van Efraim opgetree teen die wat uit die stryd kom: As rja, die seun van Johanan, Ber,gja, die seun van Mes¡llemot, en Jehisk¡a, die seun van Sallum, en Am sa, die seun van H dlai,

13 en aan hulle gesê: Julle mag die gevangenes nie hierheen bring nie; want julle dink om by ons sondes en by ons skuld nog by te voeg, sodat ons skuldig sou staan voor die HERE; want ons skuld is groot, en die toorngloed is oor Israel.

14 Die gewapendes het toe die gevangenes en die buit voor die owerstes en die hele vergadering losgelaat.

15 En die manne wat met hulle naam aangewys was, het opgestaan en die gevangenes ondersteun en al die naaktes onder hulle uit die buit klere aangetrek; en hulle het aan hulle klere en skoene gegee en hulle laat eet en drink en hulle gesalf en almal wat moeg was, op esels vervoer en na J,rigo, die palmstad, by hul broers gebring; daarna het hulle na Samar¡a teruggegaan.

16 In dieselfde tyd het koning Agas na die konings van Assirië gestuur dat hulle hom moet help.

17 Bowendien het ook die Edomiete gekom en Juda verslaan en gevangenes weggevoer.

18 Ook die Filistyne het plundertogte onderneem teen die stede van die Laeveld en die Suidland van Juda; en hulle het ingeneem: Bet-S,mes en Ajalon en G,derot en Sogo met sy onderhorige plekke en Timna met sy onderhorige plekke en Gimso met sy onderhorige plekke, en daarin gaan woon;

19 want die HERE het Juda verneder ter wille van Agas, die koning van Israel, omdat hy losbandigheid in Juda bevorder en gedurig ontrou teen die HERE gehandel het.

20 En Tilgat-Piln,ser, die koning van Assirië, het hom oorval en hom in benoudheid gebring en hom nie gehelp nie;

21 want Agas het die huis van die HERE en die huis van die koning en van die owerstes geplunder, en dit aan die koning van Assirië gegee sonder dat dit hom tot hulp was.

22 Selfs in die tyd toe hulle hom in benoudheid gebring het, het hy nog meer ontrou teen die HERE begaan, dieselfde koning Agas:

23 hy het geoffer aan die gode van Damaskus wat hom verslaan het; en hy het gedink: Die gode van die konings van Aram help hulle; ek sal aan hulle offer, dat hulle my kan help! Maar juis hulle het hom en die hele Israel tot 'n val gebring.

24 En Agas het die gereedskap van die huis van God byeengebring en die gereedskap van die huis van God stukkend geslaan en die deure van die huis van die HERE toegesluit en vir hom altare gemaak op elke hoek in Jerusalem.

25 Ook het hy in elke stad van Juda hoogtes opgerig om vir ander gode offerrook te laat opgaan en die HERE, die God van sy vaders, geterg.

26 En sy verdere geskiedenis en al sy onderneminge, die vroeëre en die latere, kyk, dit is beskrywe in die Boek van die konings van Juda en Israel.

27 En Agas het ontslaap met sy vaders, en hy is begrawe in die stad, in Jerusalem; want hulle het hom nie in die grafte van die konings van Israel gebring nie. En sy seun Jehisk¡a het in sy plek koning geword.

1 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he was ruling in Jerusalem for sixteen years; he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord, like David his father:

2 But he went in the ways of the kings of Israel and made images of metal for the Baals.

3 More than this, he had offerings burned in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and made his children go through fire, copying the disgusting ways of the nations whom the Lord had sent out of the land before the children of Israel.

4 And he made offerings and had perfumes burned in the high places and on the hills and under every green tree.

5 So the Lord his God gave him up into the hands of the king of Aram; and they overcame him, and took away a great number of his people as prisoners to Damascus. Then he was given into the hands of the king of Israel, who sent great destruction on him.

6 For Pekah, the son of Remaliah, in one day put to death a hundred and twenty thousand men of Judah, all of them good fighting-men; because they had given up the Lord, the God of their fathers.

7 And Zichri, a great fighting-man of Ephraim, put to death Maaseiah, the king's son, and Azrikam, the controller of his house, and Elkanah, who was second in authority to the king.

8 And the children of Israel took away as prisoners from their brothers, two hundred thousand, women and sons and daughters, and a great store of their goods, and took them to Samaria.

9 But a prophet of the Lord was there, named Oded; and he went out in front of the army which was coming into Samaria and said to them, Truly, because the Lord, the God of your fathers, was angry with Judah, he gave them up into your hands, and you have put them to death in an outburst of wrath stretching up to heaven.

10 And now your purpose is to keep the children of Judah and Jerusalem as men-servants and women-servants under your yoke: but are there no sins against the Lord your God to be seen among yourselves?

11 And now give ear to me, and send back the prisoners whom you have taken from your brothers: for the wrath of the Lord is burning against you.

12 Then certain of the heads of the children of Ephraim, Azariah, the son of Johanan, Berechiah, the son of Meshillemoth Jehizkiah, the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai, put themselves against those who had come from the war,

13 And said to them, You are not to let these prisoners come here; for what you are designing to do will be a cause of sin against the Lord to us, making even greater our sin and our wrongdoing, which now are great enough, and his wrath is burning against Israel.

14 So the armed men gave up the prisoners and the goods they had taken to the heads and the meeting of the people.

15 And those men who have been named went up and took the prisoners, clothing those among them who were uncovered, with things from the goods which had been taken in the war, and putting robes on them and shoes on their feet; and they gave them food and drink and oil for their bodies, and seating all the feeble among them on asses, they took them to Jericho, the town of palm-trees, to their people, and then went back to Samaria.

16 At that time King Ahaz sent for help to the king of Assyria.

17 For the Edomites had come again, attacking Judah and taking away prisoners.

18 And the Philistines, forcing their way into the towns of the lowlands and the south of Judah, had taken Beth-shemesh and Aijalon and Gederoth and Soco, with their daughter-towns, as well as Timnah and Gimzo and their daughter-towns, and were living there.

19 For the Lord made Judah low, because of Ahaz, king of Israel; for he had given up all self-control in Judah, sinning greatly against the Lord.

20 Then Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria, came to him, but was a cause of trouble and not of strength to him.

21 For Ahaz took a part of the wealth from the house of the Lord, and from the house of the king and of the great men, and gave it to the king of Assyria; but it was no help to him.

22 And in the time of his trouble, this same King Ahaz did even more evil against the Lord.

23 For he made offerings to the gods of Damascus, who were attacking him, and said, Because the gods of the kings of Aram are giving them help, I will make offerings to them so that they may give me help. But they were the cause of his downfall, and of that of all Israel.

24 And Ahaz got together the vessels of the house of God, cutting up all the vessels of the house of God, and shutting the doors of the Lord's house; and he made altars in every part of Jerusalem.

25 And in every town of Judah he made high places where perfumes were burned to other gods, awaking the wrath of the Lord, the God of his fathers.

26 Now the rest of his acts and all his ways, first and last, are recorded in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.

27 And Ahaz went to rest with his fathers, and they put his body into the earth in Jerusalem; but they did not put him in the resting-place of the kings of Israel: and Hezekiah his son became king in his place.