2 Chronicles 21
1 Jehoshaphat rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the City of David. Jehoram, his son, became king in his place.
2 He had brothers, sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, and Shephatiah. All these were sons of Jehoshaphat, king of Israel.
3 Their father gave them many gifts of silver, gold, and precious things, along with fortified cities in Judah; but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram, because he was the firstborn.
4 Jehoram took over his father’s kingdom, established himself, and killed all his brothers with the sword, along with some of the leaders of Israel.
5 Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem for eight years.
6 He followed the ways of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done, because his wife was a daughter of Ahab. He did what was evil in the LORD’s sight.
7 But the LORD was unwilling to destroy the house of David, because of the covenant he had made with David and his promise to give him and his descendants a lamp forever.
8 During his days, Edom rebelled against Judah’s rule and set up a king over themselves.
9 Jehoram crossed over with his commanders and all his chariots. He rose during the night and struck Edom, which had surrounded him, as well as the commanders of the chariots.
10 Edom has rebelled against Judah’s rule to this day. At that same time, Libnah also rebelled against his rule, because he had abandoned the LORD, the God of his ancestors.
11 He also built shrines on the hills of Judah, led the people of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness, and led Judah astray.
12 A letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying: “This is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: ‘You have not followed the ways of Jehoshaphat your father or the ways of Asa, king of Judah.
13 You have followed the ways of the kings of Israel and led Judah and the people of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness, as the house of Ahab did. You have also killed your brothers, members of your father’s house, who were better than you.
14 Look, the LORD is about to strike your people, your children, your wives, and all your possessions with a great plague.
15 You yourself will suffer many illnesses, including a disease of the intestines, until your intestines come out because of it, day after day.’”
16 The LORD stirred up against Jehoram the Philistines and the Arabs who lived near the Cushites.
17 They attacked Judah, invaded it, and carried off all the possessions found in the king’s palace, as well as his sons and wives. He was left with no son except Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.
18 After all this, the LORD struck him in the intestines with an incurable disease.
19 As time passed, at the end of two years, his intestines came out because of the disease, and he died in terrible agony. His people did not make a funeral fire for him as they had done for his ancestors.
20 He was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem for eight years. He departed without being mourned; they buried him in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.
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