WEBVTT 00:00:00.920 --> 00:00:03.700 Hello, this is Father Paul, and I'm glad we're 00:00:03.700 --> 00:00:05.719 taking this journey together to read the Bible 00:00:05.719 --> 00:00:09.900 in a year. Today's reading is from 2 Kings chapter 00:00:09.900 --> 00:00:13.839 16. In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son 00:00:13.839 --> 00:00:16.760 of Ramaliah, Ahaz the son of Jotham, king of 00:00:16.760 --> 00:00:19.420 Judah, began to reign. Ahaz was twenty years 00:00:19.420 --> 00:00:21.739 old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen 00:00:21.739 --> 00:00:24.600 years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was 00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:26.899 right in the sight of the Lord his God, as his 00:00:26.899 --> 00:00:29.620 father David had done. But he walked in the way 00:00:29.620 --> 00:00:32.600 of the kings of Israel. Indeed, he made his son 00:00:32.600 --> 00:00:35.640 pass through the fire according to the abominations 00:00:35.640 --> 00:00:38.159 of the nations, whom the Lord had cast out from 00:00:38.159 --> 00:00:40.420 before the children of Israel. And he sacrificed 00:00:40.420 --> 00:00:43.000 and burned incense on the high places, on the 00:00:43.000 --> 00:00:46.079 hills, and under every green tree. Then Rezin 00:00:46.079 --> 00:00:48.539 king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Ramaliah 00:00:48.539 --> 00:00:51.200 king of Israel, came up to Jerusalem to make 00:00:51.200 --> 00:00:54.359 war. And they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome 00:00:54.359 --> 00:00:57.439 him. At that time Rezin king of Syria captured 00:00:57.439 --> 00:01:00.200 Eilat for Syria and drove the men of Judah from 00:01:00.200 --> 00:01:02.979 Eilat. Then the Edomites went to Eilat and dwell 00:01:02.979 --> 00:01:06.640 there to this day. So Ahaz sent messengers to 00:01:06.640 --> 00:01:09.879 Tiglath -Pileser king of Assyria saying, I am 00:01:09.879 --> 00:01:12.439 your servant and your son. Come up and save me 00:01:12.439 --> 00:01:14.719 from the hand of the king of Syria and from the 00:01:14.719 --> 00:01:17.019 hand of the king of Israel who rise up against 00:01:17.019 --> 00:01:19.540 me. And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was 00:01:19.540 --> 00:01:21.900 found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries 00:01:21.900 --> 00:01:24.319 of the king's house and sent it as a present 00:01:24.319 --> 00:01:27.040 to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria 00:01:27.040 --> 00:01:29.959 heeded him, for the king of Assyria went up against 00:01:29.959 --> 00:01:32.840 Damascus and took it, carried its people captive 00:01:32.840 --> 00:01:36.700 to Ker and killed Rezin. Now king Ahaz went to 00:01:36.700 --> 00:01:39.700 Damascus to meet Tiglath -Pileser. king of Assyria, 00:01:39.819 --> 00:01:42.420 and saw an altar that was at Damascus. And king 00:01:42.420 --> 00:01:45.319 Ahaz sent to Orisha the priest the design of 00:01:45.319 --> 00:01:47.700 the altar and its pattern according to all its 00:01:47.700 --> 00:01:50.030 workmanship. Then Urijah the priest built an 00:01:50.030 --> 00:01:52.450 altar according to all that King Ahaz had sent 00:01:52.450 --> 00:01:55.909 from Damascus. So Urijah the priest made it before 00:01:55.909 --> 00:01:58.709 King Ahaz came back from Damascus. And when the 00:01:58.709 --> 00:02:01.150 king came back from Damascus, the king saw the 00:02:01.150 --> 00:02:03.569 altar, and the king approached the altar and 00:02:03.569 --> 00:02:06.370 made offerings on it. So he burned his burnt 00:02:06.370 --> 00:02:08.949 offering and his grain offering, and he poured 00:02:08.949 --> 00:02:11.229 his drink offering and sprinkled the blood of 00:02:11.229 --> 00:02:14.080 his peace offerings on the altar. He also brought 00:02:14.080 --> 00:02:16.719 the bronze altar which was before the Lord from 00:02:16.719 --> 00:02:18.979 the front of the temple from between the new 00:02:18.979 --> 00:02:21.300 altar and the house of the Lord and put it on 00:02:21.300 --> 00:02:24.659 the north side of the new altar. Then King Ahaz 00:02:24.659 --> 00:02:27.560 commanded Orisha the priest, saying, On the great 00:02:27.560 --> 00:02:30.520 new altar burn the morning burnt offering, the 00:02:30.520 --> 00:02:33.419 evening grain offering, the king's burnt sacrifice, 00:02:33.659 --> 00:02:36.400 and his grain offering, with the burnt offering 00:02:36.400 --> 00:02:39.020 of all the people of the land, their grain offering, 00:02:39.180 --> 00:02:41.939 and their drink offerings, and sprinkle on it 00:02:41.939 --> 00:02:44.599 all the blood of the burnt offering and all the 00:02:44.599 --> 00:02:47.139 blood of the sacrifice. And the bronze altar 00:02:47.139 --> 00:02:50.699 shall be for me to inquire by. Thus did Orisha 00:02:50.699 --> 00:02:53.599 the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded. 00:02:53.939 --> 00:02:56.659 And king Ahaz cut off the panels of the carts, 00:02:56.879 --> 00:02:59.840 and removed the lavers from them. And he took 00:02:59.840 --> 00:03:02.319 down the sea from the bronze oxen that were under 00:03:02.319 --> 00:03:05.000 it, and put it on a pavement of stones. Also 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:07.259 he removed the Sabbath pavilion, which they had 00:03:07.259 --> 00:03:09.740 built in the temple, and he removed the king's 00:03:09.740 --> 00:03:12.099 outer entrance from the house of the Lord, on 00:03:12.099 --> 00:03:14.569 account of the king of Assyria. Now the rest 00:03:14.569 --> 00:03:16.990 of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not 00:03:16.990 --> 00:03:19.030 written in the book of the chronicles of the 00:03:19.030 --> 00:03:21.969 kings of Judah? So Ahaz rested with his fathers, 00:03:22.069 --> 00:03:24.430 and was buried with his fathers in the city of 00:03:24.430 --> 00:03:27.789 David. Then Hezekiah his son reigned in his place. 00:03:33.150 --> 00:03:35.289 I hope you enjoyed today's reading as much as 00:03:35.289 --> 00:03:37.409 I did, and I look forward to seeing you again 00:03:37.409 --> 00:03:39.830 tomorrow to continue on our journey. God bless 00:03:39.830 --> 00:03:40.909 you and have a great day.