He eliminated the high places, smashed the sacred pillars to bits, and cut down the Asherah pole.<n id="1" /> He also demolished the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for up to that time<n id="2" /> the Israelites had been offering incense to it; it was called Nehushtan.<n id="3" />

<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.

Hezekiah prayed before the <sc>Lordsc>: &#8220;<sc>Lordsc> God of Israel, who is enthroned on the cherubs!<n id="1" /> You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the sky<n id="2" /> and the earth.

<p class="bodytext">Isaiah son of Amoz sent this message to Hezekiah: &#8220;This is what the <sc>Lordsc> God of Israel says: &#8216;I have heard your prayer concerning King Sennacherib of Assyria.<n id="1" />

He rebuilt the high places that his father Hezekiah had destroyed; he set up altars for Baal and made an Asherah pole just like King Ahab of Israel had done. He bowed down to all the stars in the sky<n id="1" /> and worshiped<n id="2" /> them.

He put an idol of Asherah he had made in the temple, about which the <sc>Lordsc> had said to David and to his son Solomon, &#8220;This temple in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, will be my permanent home.<n id="1" />

I will not make Israel again leave the land I gave to their ancestors,<n id="1" /> provided that they carefully obey all I commanded them, the whole law my servant Moses ordered them to obey.&#8221;

Say this to the king of Judah, who sent you to seek an oracle from the <sc>Lordsc>: &#8220;This is what the <sc>Lordsc> God of Israel says concerning the words you have heard:

The king ruined the high places east of Jerusalem, south of the Mount of Destruction,<n id="1" /> that King Solomon of Israel had built for the detestable Sidonian goddess Astarte, the detestable Moabite god Chemosh, and the horrible Ammonite god Milcom.

<p class="bodytext">He also tore down the altar in Bethel<n id="1" /> at the high place made by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who encouraged Israel to sin.<n id="2" /> He burned all the combustible items at that high place and crushed them to dust; including the Asherah pole.<n id="3" />

<p class="bodytext">Josiah also removed all the shrines on the high places in the cities of Samaria. The kings of Israel had made them and angered the <sc>Lordsc>.<n id="1" /> He did to them what he had done to the high place in Bethel.<n id="2" />

The <sc>Lordsc> announced, &#8220;I will also spurn Judah,<n id="1" /> just as I spurned Israel. I will reject this city that I chose &#8211; both Jerusalem and the temple, about which I said, &#8220;I will live there.&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

Nebuchadnezzar<n id="1" /> took from there all the riches in the treasuries of the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple and of the royal palace. He removed all the gold items which King Solomon of Israel had made for the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple, just as the <sc>Lordsc> had warned.

King Jehoash of Israel sent this message back to King Amaziah of Judah, &#8220;A thornbush in Lebanon sent this message to a cedar in Lebanon, &#8216;Give your daughter to my son as a wife.&#8217; Then a wild animal<n id="1" /> of Lebanon came by and trampled down the thorn.<n id="2" />

During Pekah&#8217;s reign over Israel, King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor,<n id="1" /> Gilead, and Galilee, including all the territory of Naphtali. He deported the people<n id="2" /> to Assyria.