1Forsooth seventy sons in Samaria were to Ahab. Therefore Jehu wrote letters, and sent into Samaria to the best men of the city, and to the greater men in birth, and to all the nurses of the sons of Ahab, and said,

2Anon as ye have taken these letters, ye that have the sons of your lord, and the chariots, and horses, and strong cities, and arms,

3choose the best, and him that pleaseth to you of the sons of your lord, and set [or putteth] him on the throne of his father, and fight ye for the house of your lord.

4And they dreaded greatly, and said, Lo! two kings might not stand before him, and how shall we be able to against-stand him?

5Therefore the sovereigns of the house, and the prefect of the city, and the greater men of birth, and the nurses sent to Jehu, and said, We be thy servants; whatever things thou commandest, we shall do, and we shall not make a king to us; do thou whatever thing pleaseth thee.

6Forsooth he wrote again to them letters the second time, and said, If ye be mine, and obey to me, take ye off the heads of the sons of your lord, and come ye to me in this same hour tomorrow into Jezreel. And the sons of the king, seventy men, were nursed [or nourished] at or by the best men of the city.

7And when the letters had come to them, they took the sons of the king, and killed those seventy men, and they putted [or put] the heads of them in coffins; and sent those to Jehu into Jezreel.

8And a messenger came to him, and showed to him, and said, They have brought the heads of the sons of the king. Which answered, Put ye those heads into twain [or two] heaps, beside the entering of the gate, till the morrowtide.

9And when it was clear day, he went out, and stood, and said to all the people, Ye be just [or rightwise] men; if I conspired against my lord, and killed him, who killed all these?

10Therefore see ye now, that none of the words of the Lord hath fallen down into the earth, which the Lord spake on the house of Ahab; and the Lord hath done that, that he spake in the hand of his servant, Elijah.

11Therefore Jehu smote all that were left of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all the best men of him, and his known men, and his priests, till no relics or remnants of him were left.

12And he rose, and came into Samaria; and when he had come to the chamber of the shepherds in the way,

13he found there the brethren of Ahaziah, king of Judah; and he said to them, Who be ye? And they answered, We be the brethren of Ahaziah, and we came down to greet the sons of the king, and the sons of the queen.

14And Jehu said, Take ye them quick. And when they had taken them quick, they strangled them in the cistern, beside the chamber, two and forty men; and he left not any of them alive.

15And when he had gone from thence, he found Jehonadab, the son of Rechab, coming into meeting of him; and he blessed him. And Jehu said to him, Whether thine heart is rightful [or right] with mine heart, as mine heart is with thine heart? And Jehonadab said, It is. And Jehu said, If it is, give me thine hand. Which gave his hand to him; and Jehu raised him up to him into his chariot.

16And he said to him, Come thou with me, and see my fervent love for the Lord. And he led him, put in his chariot, into Samaria.

17And he killed all men that were residue, or left, of Ahab in Samaria, till to one, by the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah.

18Therefore Jehu gathered together all the people, and said to them, Ahab worshipped Baal a little, but I shall worship him more.

19Now therefore call ye to me all the prophets of Baal, and all his servants, and all his priests; none be that come not, for great sacrifice is of me to Baal; whoever shall fail to come, he shall not live. Forsooth Jehu did this by treason, that he should destroy all the worshippers of Baal.

20And he said, Hallow ye a solemn day to Baal. And Jehu called,

21and sent into all the terms of Israel; and all the servants of Baal came, none was left, and soothly not one was that came not. And they entered into the temple of Baal; and the house of Baal was [full-]filled, from one end till to the tother.

22And Jehu said to them that were sovereigns over the priests’ clothes, Bring ye forth [the] vestments to all the servants of Baal; and they brought forth [the] vestments to them.

23And Jehu entered, and Jehonadab, the son of Rechab, into the temple of Baal. And Jehu said to the worshippers of Baal, Inquire ye, and see, lest per-adventure any of the servants of the Lord be with you; but that the servants be alone of Baal.

24Then they entered, to make slain sacrifices, and burnt sacrifices. Soothly Jehu had made ready to him without-forth fourscore men, and had said to them, Whoever shall flee away of all these, which I shall bring into your hands, the life of him that suffereth any to escape shall be for the life of him that escapeth.

25Forsooth it was done, when the burnt sacrifice was [ful] filled, Jehu commanded to his knights and [his] dukes, Enter ye, and slay them, that none escape. And the knights and dukes smote [them] with the sharpness of [the] sword, and cast forth. And they went into the city of the temple of Baal,

26and they brought forth the image from the temple of Baal, and burnt it,

27and all-brake it. Also they destroyed the house of Baal, and made privies for it unto this day.

28Therefore Jehu did away Baal from Israel;

29nevertheless he went not away from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, that made Israel to do sin, neither he forsook the golden calves, that were in Bethel and in Dan.

30Forsooth the Lord said to Jehu, For thou didest busily that that was rightful [or right], and that pleased in mine eyes, and hast done against the house of Ahab all things that were in mine heart, thy sons till to the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.

31Forsooth Jehu kept not, that he went in the law of the Lord God of Israel in all his heart; for he went not away from the sins of Jeroboam, that made Israel to do sin.

32In those days the Lord began to be annoyed ¹²upon Israel; and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel,

33from Jordan against the east coast, all the land of Gilead, and of Gad, and of Reuben, and of Manasseh, from Aroer, which is on the strand [or stream] of Arnon, and Gilead, and Bashan.

34Forsooth the residue of [the] words of Jehu, and all things that he did, and his strength, whether these be not written in the book of [the] words of [the] days of the kings of Israel?

35And Jehu slept with his fathers; and they buried him in Samaria; and Jehoahaz, his son, reigned for him.

36Forsooth the days, in which Jehu reigned upon Israel in Samaria, be eight and twenty years.