So the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the princes and all the congregation. And the men who have been named rose up, and took the captives, and with the spoil clothed all that were naked among them, and arrayed them, and shod them, and gave them to eat and to drink, and anointed them, and carried all the feeble of them upon asses, and brought them to Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto their brethren: then they returned to Samaria.
At that time did King Ahaz send unto the kings of Assyria to help him. For again the Edomites had come and smitten Judah, and carried away captives. The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the lowland, and of the south of Judah, and had taken Beth-shemesh, and Aijalon, and Gederoth, and Soco with the towns thereof, and Timnah with the towns thereof, Gimzo also and the towns thereof: and they dwelt there. For the Lord brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel; for he had dealt wantonly in Judah, and trespassed sore against the Lord. And Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came unto him, and distressed him, but strengthened him not.
For Ahaz took away a portion out of the house of the Lord, and out of the house of the king and of the princes, and gave it unto the king of Assyria: but it helped him not. And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the Lord, this same King Ahaz. For he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus. And King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus: and King Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the [{296}] pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof. And Urijah the priest built an altar: according to all that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so did Urijah the priest make it against King Ahaz came from Damascus. And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king drew near unto the altar, and offered thereon.
And he burnt his burnt offering and his meal offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar. And the brazen altar, which was before the Lord, he brought from the forefront of the house, from between his altar and the house of the Lord, and put it on the north side of his altar.
And King Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, "Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt offering, and the evening meal offering, and the king's burnt offering, and his meal offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their meal offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice: but the brazen altar shall be for me to inquire by."
Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that King Ahaz commanded. And King Ahaz cut off the borders of the bases, and removed the laver from off them; and took down the sea from off the brazen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stone. And the covered way for the Sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king's entry without, turned he unto the house of the Lord, because of the king of Assyria.
THE POOL OF HEZEKIAH IN JERUSALEM
From a photograph belonging to the Forbes Library, Northampton, Mass., and used by special permission