In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin; he departed not therefrom. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael, continually.
And Jehoahaz besought the Lord, and the Lord hearkened unto him: for he saw the oppression of Israel, how that the king of Syria oppressed them. And the Lord gave Israel a saviour, so that they went out from under the hand of the Syrians: and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents, as beforetime. Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, wherewith he made Israel to sin, but walked therein: and there remained the Asherah also in Samaria.
And there were left to Jehoahaz of the people only fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Syria destroyed them, and made them like the dust in threshing. And Jehoahaz died; and they buried him in Samaria: and Joash his son reigned in his stead.
JOASH.
(The oppression of the Syrians continued into the reign of Joash, but in the later days of the reign, Joash gained the ascendency over his foes in three great battles, according to the prophecy of Elisha when he was about to die, as is told in the ["Stories of Elijah and Elisha"] in another chapter of this volume.)
And Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. But the Lord was gracious unto them, and had compassion on them, and had respect unto them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast he them from his presence as yet. And Hazael king of Syria died; and Ben-hadad his son reigned in his stead. And Joash the son of Jehoahaz took again out of the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did Joash smite him, and recovered the cities of Israel.
JEROBOAM II.
(Jeroboam II. was an evil king, but as a soldier he was one of the greatest in the history of Israel. He extended the territory of the people in every direction. The country was prosperous in a commercial sense as it never had been before. The rich people lived in the most luxurious houses and spent their time in idleness and dissipation. But there was another side to the picture. The poor were terribly oppressed, and there was no such thing as justice. The people worshiped idols and indulged in all kinds of evil practices. We know most about the reign through the prophet Amos, who sternly denounced all this wickedness.)