📖 This chapter exists in 3 other originals — side by side (Hebrew Old Testament, Septuagint, Ge'ez Bible)
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⚠️ The Chinese and English alongside are the CUV and the WEB, both translated from the Masoretic Text; they follow a different textual tradition from the Greek and Latin shown here and will disagree in places.
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Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. He didn’t do that which was right in Yahweh his God’s eyes, like David his father.
But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and even made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom Yahweh cast out from before the children of Israel.
So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath Pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. 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 rise up against me.”
Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in Yahweh’s house, and in the treasures of the king’s house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.
The king of Assyria listened to him; and the king of Assyria went up against Damascus and took it, and carried its people captive to Kir, and killed Rezin.
King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath Pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus; and King Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest a drawing of the altar and plans to build it.
Urijah the priest built an altar. According to all that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so Urijah the priest made it for the coming of King Ahaz from Damascus.
The bronze altar, which was before Yahweh, he brought from the front of the house, from between his altar and Yahweh’s house, and put it on the north side of his altar.
King Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, “On the great altar burn the morning burnt offering, the evening meal offering, the king’s burnt offering and his meal offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, their meal offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle on it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice; but the bronze altar will be for me to inquire by.”
King Ahaz cut off the panels of the bases, and removed the basin from off them, and took down the sea from off the bronze oxen that were under it, and put it on a pavement of stone.
He removed the covered way for the Sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king’s outer entrance to Yahweh’s house, because of the king of Assyria.