2 Kings 14 King James Version (KJV)
14 In the second year of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel reigned Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah.
2 He was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.
3 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, yet not like David his father: he did according to all things as Joash his father did.
4 Howbeit the high places were not taken away: as yet the people did sacrifice and burnt incense on the high places.
5 And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his hand, that he slew his servants which had slain the king his father.
6 But the children of the murderers he slew not: according unto that which is written in the book of the law of Moses, wherein the Lordcommanded, saying, The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children be put to death for the fathers; but every man shall be put to death for his own sin.
7 He slew of Edom in the valley of salt ten thousand, and took Selah by war, and called the name of it Joktheel unto this day.
8 Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us look one another in the face.
9 And Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife: and there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trode down the thistle.
10 Thou hast indeed smitten Edom, and thine heart hath lifted thee up: glory of this, and tarry at home: for why shouldest thou meddle to thy hurt, that thou shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah with thee?
11 But Amaziah would not hear. Therefore Jehoash king of Israel went up; and he and Amaziah king of Judah looked one another in the face at Bethshemesh, which belongeth to Judah.
12 And Judah was put to the worse before Israel; and they fled every man to their tents.
13 And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Bethshemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
14 And he took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king’s house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria.
15 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
16 And Jehoash slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel; and Jeroboam his son reigned in his stead.
17 And Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years.
18 And the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
19 Now they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem: and he fled to Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there.
20 And they brought him on horses: and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David.
21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah, which was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah.
22 He built Elath, and restored it to Judah, after that the king slept with his fathers.
23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel began to reign in Samaria, and reigned forty and one years.
24 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord: he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.
25 He restored the coast of Israel from the entering of Hamath unto the sea of the plain, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which he spake by the hand of his servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet, which was of Gathhepher.
26 For the Lord saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter: for there was not any shut up, nor any left, nor any helper for Israel.
27 And the Lord said not that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven: but he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.
28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did, and his might, how he warred, and how he recovered Damascus, and Hamath, which belonged to Judah, for Israel, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
29 And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, even with the kings of Israel; and Zachariah his son reigned in his stead.
Commentary
An era of prosperity (14:23-15:7)
During the long reigns of Jeroboam II in the north and Azariah (or Uzziah) in the south, Israel and Judah experienced political stability and economic development such as they had not known since the days of David and Solomon. This was possible partly because political conditions in the region were favourable to Israel and Judah.
Syria had been used by God to punish Israel for its sins in following Baal. With the death of Hazael, Syrian power declined and Israel regained lost territory (see 13:24-25). Events further favoured Israel when Assyria, the rising power in the region, became involved with enemies to its north and for forty
years did not bother Israel and Judah.
Under these conditions Jeroboam II expanded his kingdom from Hamath in the north to the Dead Sea in the south, as foretold by the prophet Jonah. This gave him control over many trade routes, which further helped Israel’s economy. But religiously he was a failure, and the evils of his reign were condemned by the prophets Amos and Hosea (23-29; cf. Amos 1:1; 7:10-11; Hosea 1:1; 7:1-3).
Azariah (or Uzziah) in Judah began his reign well, mainly because of the godly instruction that he received from his teacher Zechariah (15:1-3; 2 Chron 26:1-5). He spread his rule west to the Mediterranean Sea, east over Ammonite territory, and south as far as the Red Sea and Egypt. This
gave him control over important land and sea trade routes (see 14:22; 2 Chron 26:6-8). He fortified the capital city Jerusalem, improved agricultural and pastoral conditions in every region of the country, built up the armed forces and equipped his troops with the most modern weapons (2 Chron 26:9-15). His big mistake was to think that he could become religious head of the nation as well. God punished him with leprosy, and his son Jotham acted as joint ruler till Uzziah’s death (4-7; 2 Chron 26:16-23).
Jonah and the Assyrians
Israel’s prosperity during the era produced within many Israelites, even the prophet Jonah, a selfish, nationalistic spirit. Jonah had already successfully predicted Jeroboam II’s victories over a number of enemies (see 14:25), and no doubt he would have liked to see the downfall of Assyria. The capital of Assyria, Nineveh, was already threatened by an enemy from the north. But God told Jonah to go and warn Nineveh of the coming attack, and urge the people to repent of their sins so that they might avoid destruction (Jonah 3:4-5,10).
At first Jonah refused to go, for he preferred to see Nineveh overthrown. He had to learn that God was the controller of all nations, and he would have mercy on any who turned from their sins, regardless of nationality. This was of particular importance in the case of the Assyrians, for God was preserving them to be his instrument to punish Israel.
The fiery preaching of Amos
Two hundred years earlier, in the time of Solomon, a distinct merchant class had begun to appear in Israel (see notes on 1 Kings 9:26-10:29). During the time of Jeroboam II and Uzziah (the eighth century BC), the merchants grew into a powerful group. Society was no longer built around the simple agricultural life. As commerce and trade developed, so did city life. This brought with it greed and oppression, as the
upper classes exploited the poorer classes. Bribery was widespread, the courts were corrupt, and the poor were left with no way of obtaining justice.
Amos was the first of several prophets to speak out against these evils. He was a shepherd-farmer who knew how the poor suffered, because he himself had to deal with ruthless merchants and corrupt officials in selling his produce. In his fiery preaching he condemned the greed and luxury of the rich. He knew they had gained their wealth by cheating and injustice (Amos 2:6-7; 3:10,15; 6:4-6; 8:4-6). They still carried out their religious exercises, but these were worthless in God’s sight as long as the worshippers persisted in wrongdoing (Amos 5:21-24; 8:10).
Most of Amos’s attacks were directed against the northern kingdom (Amos 2:6; 4:1; 6:1; 7:10). The people, it seems, took little notice. Amos clearly saw what Israel’s upper classes failed to see, namely, that the nation was heading for a terrible judgment from God (Amos 3:12; 6:14; 7:11).
Hosea’s experiences
Despite Amos’s accusations and warnings, social conditions in Israel worsened. This is seen from the writings of Hosea, who began to preach late in the reigns of Jeroboam II and Uzziah, and continued through the reigns of succeeding kings (Hosea 1:1). Like Amos, Hosea was concerned chiefly with Israel, though he referred also to Judah.
Hosea saw that Israel’s society was corrupt because its religion was corrupt. The priests were as bad as the merchants and officials. Baal worship, complete with its fertility rites and prostitution, was widely practised. Israel did not know the character of Yahweh (Hosea 4:1-6,17-19; 5:4,15; 6:6-10; 7:2-4; 9:15;
13:16; cf. Amos 2:7-8).
Since Israel’s covenant bond with Yahweh was likened to the marriage bond, Israel’s association with other gods was really spiritual adultery. Hosea began to understand what this meant to God when his own wife left him for other lovers. But her pleasures did not last and she was sold as a slave. All this time Hosea remained faithful to his marriage covenant, and when he found his wife a slave, he bought her back. It was a picture of the covenant love of God for his unfaithful people. They too would go into captivity, but after cleansing from the filth of their adulterous association with the Canaanite gods, God would bring them back to live in their land again (Hosea 2:5-10; 3:1-5).