2 Kings 15:8-16

Zechariah’s Reign over Israel

15:8 In the thirty-eighth year of King Azariah’s reign over Judah, Jeroboam’s son Zechariah became king over Israel. He reigned in Samaria ¹  for six months. 15:9 He did evil in the sight of ²  the Lord, as his ancestors had done. He did not repudiate ³  the sinful ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat who encouraged Israel to sin. 15:10 Shallum son of Jabesh conspired against him; he assassinated him in Ibleam ⁴  and took his place as king. 15:11 The rest of the events of Zechariah’s reign are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. ⁵  15:12 His assassination brought to fulfillment the Lord’s word to Jehu, ⁶  “Four generations of your descendants will rule over Israel.” ⁷  That is exactly what happened. ⁸ 

15:13 Shallum son of Jabesh became king in the thirty-ninth year of King Uzziah’s ⁹  reign over Judah. He reigned for one month ¹⁰  in Samaria. 15:14 Menahem son of Gadi went up from Tirzah to ¹¹  Samaria and attacked Shallum son of Jabesh. ¹²  He killed him and took his place as king. 15:15 The rest of the events of Shallum’s reign, including the conspiracy he organized, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. ¹³  15:16 At that time Menahem came from Tirzah and attacked Tiphsah. He struck down all who lived in the city and the surrounding territory, because they would not surrender. ¹⁴  He even ripped open the pregnant women.

[15:8]  ¹ map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.

[15:9]  ² tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

[15:9]  ³ tn Heb “turn away from.”

[15:10]  ⁴ tc The MT reads, “and he struck him down before the people and killed him” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). However, the reading קָבָל עָם (qaval ’am), “before the people,” is problematic to some because קָבָל is a relatively late Aramaic term. Nevertheless, the Aramaic term qobel certainly antedates the writing of Kings. The bigger problem seems to be the unnecessary intrusion of an Aramaic word at all here. Most interpreters prefer to follow Lucian’s Greek version and read “in Ibleam” (בְיִבְלְעָם, bÿivle’am). Cf. NAB, TEV.

[15:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jeroboam, look, they are written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel.”

[15:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “It was the word of the Lord which he spoke to Jehu, saying.”

[15:12]  ⁷ tn “sons of four generations will sit for you on the throne of Israel.”

[15:12]  ⁸ tn Heb “and it was so.”

[15:13]  ⁹ sn Azariah was also known by the name Uzziah.

[15:13]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “a month of days.”

[15:14]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and came to.”

[15:14]  ¹² tn Heb “went up from Tirzah and arrived in Samaria and attacked Shallum son of Jabesh in Samaria.”

[15:15]  ¹³ tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he conspired, look, they are written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel.”

[15:16]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “then Menahem attacked Tiphsah and all who were in it and its borders from Tirzah, for it would not open, and he attacked.”