Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. He did evil in the eyes of the LORD . . . He sacrificed his children in the fire in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, practiced divination and witchcraft, sought omens, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the eyes of the LORD, arousing His anger. He took the image he had made and put it i...  Read More

Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years.   . . . He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, but not wholeheartedly.   . . . Amaziah called the people of Judah together and assigned them according to their families to commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds for all Judah and Benjamin. He then mustered those twenty years old...  Read More

Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory He will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who His children really are.Against its will, all creation was subjected to God's curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God's children in glorious freedom from death and decay.  . . . And we Be...  Read More

After all that Hezekiah had faithfully done, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah.  . . . he sent his officers to Jerusalem with this message for Hezekiah king of Judah and for all the people of Judah who were there:"This is what Sennacherib king of Assyria says: On what are you basing your confidence, that you remain in Jerusalem under siege? When Hezekiah says, 'The LORD our God wi...  Read More

All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the LORD. Then the Spirit of the LORD came on Jahaziel . . . a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly.He said: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you. 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is ...  Read More

After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.  . . . Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek Him.Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple ...  Read More