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He also desecrated Topheth in the Valley of Ben-hinnom so that no one could sacrifice his son or daughter in the fire to Molech.

"Let him rest," said Josiah. "Do not let anyone disturb his bones." So they left his bones undisturbed, along with those of the prophet who had come from Samaria.

Just as Josiah had done at Bethel, so also in the cities of Samaria he removed all the shrines of the high places which had been set up by the kings of Israel and had provoked the LORD to anger.

And Pharaoh Neco imprisoned Jehoahaz at Riblah in the land of Hamath so that he could not reign in Jerusalem, and he imposed on Judah a levy of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.

So Jehoiakim paid the silver and gold to Pharaoh Neco, but to meet Pharaoh's demand he taxed the land and exacted the silver and the gold from the people, each according to his wealth.

During Jehoiakim's reign, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded. So Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years, until he turned and rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.

Jehoiachin king of Judah, his mother, his servants, his commanders, and his officials all surrendered to the king of Babylon. So in the eighth year of Jehoiachin's reign, the king of Babylon took him captive.

So in the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his entire army. They encamped outside the city and built a siege wall all around it.

By the ninth day of the fourth month, the famine in the city was so severe that the people of the land had no food.

There at Riblah in the land of Hamath, the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death. So Judah was taken into exile, away from her land.

So Jehoiachin changed his prison clothes, and for the rest of his life he dined regularly before the king.

So from Shem came Arphaxad, Shelah,

And Jabez called out to the God of Israel, "If only You would bless me and enlarge my territory! May Your hand be with me and keep me from harm, so that I will be free from pain." And God granted the request of Jabez.

Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters, but his brothers did not have many children, so their whole clan did not become as numerous as the sons of Judah.

These were the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel. Though he was the firstborn, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph son of Israel, because Reuben defiled his father's bed. So he is not reckoned according to birthright.

So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria (that is, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria) to take the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh into exile. And he brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan, where they remain to this day.

So the descendants of Aaron were given Hebron (a city of refuge), Libnah, Jattir, Eshtemoa,

And from the tribe of Benjamin they were given Geba, Alemeth, and Anathoth, together with their pasturelands. So they had thirteen cities in all among their families.

So the Israelites gave to the Levites these cities and their pasturelands.

And again he slept with his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. So he named him Beriah, because tragedy had come upon his house.