The Kyle File

2 Chronicles 23, 24, 25

John 16:16-33

2 Chronicles 23

1 In the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened himself, and took the captains of hundreds, Azariah the son of Jeroham, and Ishmael the son of Jehohanan, and Azariah the son of Obed, and Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri, into covenant with him. 2 They went about in Judah, and gathered the Levites out of all the cities of Judah, and the heads of fathers’ households of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. 3 All the assembly made a covenant with the king in God’s house. He said to them, “Behold, the king’s son shall reign, as Yahweh has spoken concerning the sons of David. 4 This is the thing that you shall do. A third part of you, who come in on the Sabbath, of the priests and of the Levites, shall be porters of the thresholds. 5 A third part shall be at the king’s house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation. All the people shall be in the courts of Yahweh’s house. 6 But let no one come into Yahweh’s house, except the priests, and those who minister of the Levites. They shall come in, for they are holy, but all the people shall follow Yahweh’s instructions. 7 The Levites shall surround the king, every man with his weapons in his hand. Whoever comes into the house, let him be slain. Be with the king when he comes in, and when he goes out.”

8 So the Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded: and they took every man his men, those who were to come in on the Sabbath; with those who were to go out on the Sabbath; for Jehoiada the priest didn’t dismiss the shift. 9 Jehoiada the priest delivered to the captains of hundreds the spears, and bucklers, and shields, that had been king David’s, which were in God’s house. 10 He set all the people, every man with his weapon in his hand, from the right side of the house to the left side of the house, along by the altar and the house, around the king. 11 Then they brought out the king’s son, and put the crown on him, and gave him the testimony, and made him king: and Jehoiada and his sons anointed him; and they said, “Long live the king!”

12 When Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she came to the people into Yahweh’s house: 13 and she looked, and, behold, the king stood by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the trumpets by the king; and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew trumpets; the singers also played musical instruments, and led the singing of praise. Then Athaliah tore her clothes, and said, “Treason! treason!”

14 Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains of hundreds who were set over the army, and said to them, “Bring her out between the ranks; and whoever follows her, let him be slain with the sword.” For the priest said, “Don’t kill her in the Yahweh’s house.” 15 So they made way for her. She went to the entrance of the horse gate to the king’s house; and they killed her there. 16 Jehoiada made a covenant between himself, and all the people, and the king, that they should be Yahweh’s people. 17 All the people went to the house of Baal, and broke it down, and broke his altars and his images in pieces, and killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. 18 Jehoiada appointed the officers of Yahweh’s house under the hand of the priests the Levites, whom David had distributed in Yahweh’s house, to offer the burnt offerings of Yahweh, as it is written in the law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, according to the order of David. 19 He set the porters at the gates of Yahweh’s house, that no one who was unclean in anything should enter in. 20 He took the captains of hundreds, and the nobles, and the governors of the people, and all the people of the land, and brought down the king from Yahweh’s house: and they came through the upper gate to the king’s house, and set the king on the throne of the kingdom. 21 So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet. Athaliah they had slain with the sword.

2 Chronicles 24

1 Joash was seven years old when he began to reign; and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Zibiah, of Beersheba. 2 Joash did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh all the days of Jehoiada the priest. 3 Jehoiada took for him two wives; and he became the father of sons and daughters. 4 After this, Joash intended to restore Yahweh’s house. 5 He gathered together the priests and the Levites, and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah, and gather money to repair the house of your God from all Israel from year to year. See that you expedite this matter.” However the Levites didn’t do it right away. 6 The king called for Jehoiada the chief, and said to him, “Why haven’t you required of the Levites to bring in the tax of Moses the servant of Yahweh, and of the assembly of Israel, out of Judah and out of Jerusalem, for the tent of the testimony?” 7 For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken up God’s house; and they also gave all the dedicated things of Yahweh’s house to the Baals. 8 So the king commanded, and they made a chest, and set it outside at the gate of Yahweh’s house. 9 They made a proclamation through Judah and Jerusalem, to bring in for Yahweh the tax that Moses the servant of God laid on Israel in the wilderness. 10 All the princes and all the people rejoiced, and brought in, and cast into the chest, until they had made an end. 11 It was so, that whenever the chest was brought to the king’s officers by the hand of the Levites, and when they saw that there was much money, the king’s scribe and the chief priest’s officer came and emptied the chest, and took it, and carried it to its place again. Thus they did day by day, and gathered money in abundance. 12 The king and Jehoiada gave it to such as did the work of the service of Yahweh’s house; and they hired masons and carpenters to restore Yahweh’s house, and also such as worked iron and brass to repair Yahweh’s house. 13 So the workmen worked, and the work of repairing went forward in their hands, and they set up God’s house in its state, and strengthened it. 14 When they had made an end, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada, of which were made vessels for Yahweh’s house, even vessels with which to minister and to offer, and spoons, and vessels of gold and silver. They offered burnt offerings in Yahweh’s house continually all the days of Jehoiada. 15 But Jehoiada grew old and was full of days, and he died; one hundred thirty years old was he when he died. 16 They buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, and toward God and his house. 17 Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah, and made obeisance to the king. Then the king listened to them. 18 They abandoned the house of Yahweh, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherah poles and the idols; and wrath came on Judah and Jerusalem for this their guiltiness. 19 Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again to Yahweh; and they testified against them: but they would not give ear. 20 The Spirit of God came on Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest; and he stood above the people, and said to them, “Thus says God, ‘Why do you disobey Yahweh’s commandments, so that you can’t prosper? Because you have forsaken Yahweh, he has also forsaken you.’”

21 They conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of Yahweh’s house. 22 Thus Joash the king didn’t remember the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but killed his son. When he died, he said, “May Yahweh look at it, and repay it.” 23 At the end of the year, the army of the Syrians came up against him: and they came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people, and sent all their plunder to the king of Damascus. 24 For the army of the Syrians came with a small company of men; and Yahweh delivered a very great army into their hand, because they had forsaken Yahweh, the God of their fathers. So they executed judgment on Joash. 25 When they were departed for him (for they left him very sick), his own servants conspired against him for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and killed him on his bed, and he died; and they buried him in the city of David, but they didn’t bury him in the tombs of the kings. 26 These are those who conspired against him: Zabad the son of Shimeath the Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith the Moabitess. 27 Now concerning his sons, and the greatness of the burdens laid on him, and the rebuilding of God’s house, behold, they are written in the commentary of the book of the kings. Amaziah his son reigned in his place.

2 Chronicles 25

1 Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Jehoaddan, of Jerusalem. 2 He did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh, but not with a perfect heart. 3 Now when the kingdom was established to him, he killed his servants who had killed the king his father. 4 But he didn’t put their children to death, but did according to that which is written in the law in the book of Moses, as Yahweh commanded, saying, “The fathers shall not die for the children, neither shall the children die for the fathers; but every man shall die for his own sin.” 5 Moreover Amaziah gathered Judah together, and ordered them according to their fathers’ houses, under captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, even all Judah and Benjamin: and he numbered them from twenty years old and upward, and found them three hundred thousand chosen men, able to go out to war, who could handle spear and shield. 6 He hired also one hundred thousand mighty men of valor out of Israel for one hundred talents of silver. 7 A man of God came to him, saying, “O king, don’t let the army of Israel go with you; for Yahweh is not with Israel, with all the children of Ephraim. 8 But if you will go, take action, be strong for the battle. God will overthrow you before the enemy; for God has power to help, and to overthrow.”

9 Amaziah said to the man of God, “But what shall we do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel?”

The man of God answered, “Yahweh is able to give you much more than this.”

10 Then Amaziah separated them, the army that had come to him out of Ephraim, to go home again: therefore their anger was greatly kindled against Judah, and they returned home in fierce anger. 11 Amaziah took courage, and led his people out, and went to the Valley of Salt, and struck ten thousand of the children of Seir. 12 The children of Judah carried away ten thousand alive, and brought them to the top of the rock, and threw them down from the top of the rock, so that they all were broken in pieces. 13 But the men of the army whom Amaziah sent back, that they should not go with him to battle, fell on the cities of Judah, from Samaria even to Beth Horon, and struck of them three thousand, and took much plunder. 14 Now after Amaziah had come from the slaughter of the Edomites, he brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned incense to them. 15 Therefore Yahweh’s anger was kindled against Amaziah, and he sent to him a prophet, who said to him, “Why have you sought after the gods of the people, which have not delivered their own people out of your hand?”

16 As he talked with him, the king said to him, “Have we made you one of the king’s counselors? Stop! Why should you be struck down?”

Then the prophet stopped, and said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this, and have not listened to my counsel.”

17 Then Amaziah king of Judah consulted his advisers, and sent to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us look one another in the face.”

18 Joash 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 your daughter to my son as his wife; then a wild animal that was in Lebanon passed by, and trampled down the thistle. 19 You say to yourself that you have struck Edom; and your heart lifts you up to boast. Now stay at home. Why should you meddle with trouble, that you should fall, even you, and Judah with you?’”

20 But Amaziah would not listen; for it was of God, that he might deliver them into the hand of their enemies, because they had sought after the gods of Edom. 21 So Joash king of Israel went up; and he and Amaziah king of Judah looked one another in the face at Beth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 22 Judah was defeated by Israel; and they fled every man to his tent. 23 Joash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, at Beth Shemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four hundred cubits. 24 He took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in God’s house with Obed-Edom, and the treasures of the king’s house, the hostages also, and returned to Samaria. 25 Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years. 26 Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, first and last, behold, aren’t they written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel? 27 Now from the time that Amaziah turned away from following Yahweh, they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem. He fled to Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish, and killed him there. 28 They brought him on horses, and buried him with his fathers in the city of Judah.

John 16:16-33

17 Some of his disciples therefore said to one another, “What is this that he says to us, ‘A little while, and you won’t see me, and again a little while, and you will see me;’ and, ‘Because I go to the Father’?” 18 They said therefore, “What is this that he says, ‘A little while’? We don’t know what he is saying.”

19 Therefore Jesus perceived that they wanted to ask him, and he said to them, “Do you inquire among yourselves concerning this, that I said, ‘A little while, and you won’t see me, and again a little while, and you will see me?’ 20 Most certainly I tell you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. 21 A woman, when she gives birth, has sorrow, because her time has come. But when she has delivered the child, she doesn’t remember the anguish any more, for the joy that a human being is born into the world. 22 Therefore you now have sorrow, but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.

23 “In that day you will ask me no questions. Most certainly I tell you, whatever you may ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. 24 Until now, you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be made full. 25 I have spoken these things to you in figures of speech. But the time is coming when I will no more speak to you in figures of speech, but will tell you plainly about the Father. 26 In that day you will ask in my name; and I don’t say to you, that I will pray to the Father for you, 27 for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me, and have believed that I came from God. 28 I came from the Father, and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.”

29 His disciples said to him, “Behold, now you speak plainly, and speak no figures of speech. 30 Now we know that you know all things, and don’t need for anyone to question you. By this we believe that you came from God.”

31 Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? 32 Behold, the time is coming, yes, and has now come, that you will be scattered, everyone to his own place, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me. 33 I have told you these things, that in me you may have peace. In the world you have oppression; but cheer up! I have overcome the world.”

Scriptures for today’s Bible reading are referenced in the One-Year Bible Reading Calendar and are read from the World English Bible. Both the reading plan and the Bible text are known to be in the public domain, and may be reproduced, in whole or in part, for any purpose, without limitation or restriction of any kind. If this reading is a blessing to you, please consider making a donation to the missionaries who are working on the World English Bible as well as many other projects to spread the Good News of Christ throughout the world. Your prayers are of course quite valuable as well. Enjoy, share and be blessed in Jesus’ Name.