2 Chronicles 25:1-13

The Reign of Amaziah

25¹ Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he was ruling in Jerusalem for twenty-nine years; his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. ² He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, but his heart was not completely true to the Lord. ³ Now when he became strong in the kingdom, he put to death those men who had taken the life of the king his father. ⁴ But he did not put their children to death, for he kept the orders of the Lord recorded in the book of the law of Moses, saying, The fathers are not to be put to death for their children or the children for their fathers, but a man is to be put to death for the sin which he himself has done. ⁵ Then Amaziah got all Judah together and put them in order by their families, even all Judah and Benjamin, under captains of thousands and captains of hundreds: and he had those of twenty years old and over numbered, and they came to three hundred thousand of the best fighting-men, trained for war and in the use of the spear and the body-cover. ⁶ And for a hundred talents of silver, he got a hundred thousand fighting-men from Israel. ⁷ But a man of God came to him, saying, O king, let not the army of Israel go with you; for the Lord is not with Israel, that is, the children of Ephraim. ⁸ But go yourself, and be strong in war; God will not let you go down before those who are fighting against you; for God has power to give help or to send you down before your attackers. ⁹ Then Amaziah said to the man of God, But what is to be done about the hundred talents which I have given for the armed band of Israel? And the man of God in answer said, God is able to give you much more than this. ¹⁰ So Amaziah, separating the armed band which had come to him from Ephraim, sent them back again; which made them very angry with Judah, and they went back burning with wrath. ¹¹ Then Amaziah took heart, and went out at the head of his people and came to the Valley of Salt, where he put to death ten thousand of the children of Seir; ¹² And ten thousand more the children of Israel took living, and made them go up to the top of the rock, pushing them down from the top of the rock so that their bodies were broken by the fall. ¹³ But the men of the band which Amaziah sent back and did not take with him to the fight, made attacks on the towns of Judah from Samaria to Beth-horon, putting to death three thousand of their people and taking away a great store of their goods.