The king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea was planning a revolt.<n id="1" /> Hoshea had sent messengers to King So<n id="2" /> of Egypt and had not sent his annual tribute to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria arrested him and imprisoned him.<n id="3" />

<t /><p class="bodytext">This happened because the Israelites sinned against the <sc>Lordsc> their God, who brought them up from the land of Egypt and freed them from the power of<n id="1" /> Pharaoh king of Egypt. They worshiped<n id="2" /> other gods;

Instead you must worship the <sc>Lordsc>, who brought you up from the land of Egypt by his great power and military ability;<n id="1" /> bow down to him and offer sacrifices to him.

<p class="bodytext">In the fourth year of King Hezekiah&#8217;s reign (it was the seventh year of the reign of Israel&#8217;s King Hoshea, son of Elah), King Shalmaneser of Assyria marched<n id="1" /> up against Samaria<n id="2" /> and besieged it.

<p class="poetry">Through your messengers you taunted the sovereign master,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;With my many chariots<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">I climbed up the high mountains,p> <p class="poetry">the slopes of Lebanon.p> <p class="poetry">I cut down its tall cedars,p> <p class="poetry">and its best evergreens.p> <p class="poetry">I invaded its most remote regions,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">its thickest woods.p>

&#8220;Go back and tell Hezekiah, the leader of my people: &#8216;This is what the <sc>Lordsc> God of your ancestor David says: &#8220;I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Look, I will heal you. The day after tomorrow<n id="1" /> you will go up to the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple.

The king went up to the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple, accompanied by all the people of Judah, all the residents of Jerusalem, the priests, and the prophets. All the people were there, from the youngest to the oldest. He read aloud<n id="1" /> all the words of the scroll of the covenant that had been discovered in the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple.

During Josiah&#8217;s reign Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt marched toward<n id="1" /> the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to fight him, but Necho<n id="2" /> killed him at Megiddo<n id="3" /> when he saw him.

<p class="bodytext">Elijah<n id="1" /> said to the king,<n id="2" /> &#8220;This is what the <sc>Lordsc> says, &#8216;You sent messengers to seek an oracle from Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron. You must think there is no God in Israel from whom you can seek an oracle!<n id="3" /> Therefore you will not leave the bed you lie on, for you will certainly die.&#8217;&#8221;<n id="4" />p>

<p class="bodytext">When he left there, he met<n id="1" /> Jehonadab, son of Rekab, who had been looking for him.<n id="2" /> Jehu greeted him and asked,<n id="3" /> &#8220;Are you as committed to me as I am to you?&#8221;<n id="4" /> Jehonadab answered, &#8220;I am!&#8221; Jehu replied, &#8220;If so, give me your hand.&#8221;<n id="5" /> So he offered his hand and Jehu<n id="6" /> pulled him up into the chariot.

King Jehoash of Judah collected all the sacred items that his ancestors Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah, kings of Judah, had consecrated, as well as his own sacred items and all the gold that could be found in the treasuries of the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple and the royal palace. He sent it all<n id="1" /> to King Hazael of Syria, who then withdrew<n id="2" /> from Jerusalem.p>