2 Chronicles 21

1 And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David, and Joram his son reigned in his place. [a] 2 And he had brothers, six sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jeiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, and Shephatiah. All these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of Judah. [b] 3 And their father gave them many gifts — silver and gold and weapons — along with fortified cities in Judah; but he gave the kingdom to Joram, because he was the firstborn.

4 And Joram rose up over his kingdom and made himself strong, and he killed all his brothers with the sword, and some of the rulers of Israel as well. 5 Joram was thirty-two years old when he came into his kingdom, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.

6 And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab did, for Ahab’s daughter was his wife; and he did what was evil before the Lord. 7 But the Lord was not willing to destroy the house of David, because of the covenant he had made with David, and because he had said he would give a lamp to him and to his sons for all the days. [c]

8 In those days Edom revolted from Judah, and they made a king over themselves. 9 And Joram went out with the rulers, and all the cavalry with him. And he rose by night and struck Edom, which had surrounded him, and the commanders of the chariots; and the people fled to their tents. [d] 10 So Edom stayed in revolt from Judah to this day. Then Libnah too revolted at that time from under his hand, because he had abandoned the Lord, the God of his fathers. [e] 11 For he himself made high places in the cities of Judah, and he made the people living in Jerusalem go whoring, and he led Judah astray. [f]

12 And a writing came to him from Elijah the prophet, which said: “Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: Because you have not walked in the way of Jehoshaphat your father, or in the ways of Asa king of Judah, [g] 13 but have walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and have made Judah and the people living in Jerusalem go whoring, as the house of Ahab went whoring, and have killed your brothers, your father’s sons, who were better than you — [h] 14 look, the Lord will strike you with a great blow among your people, and among your sons and your wives and all your goods; [i] 15 and you yourself will be in a grievous sickness, with a disease of the bowels, until your bowels come out with the sickness, day after day.”

16 So the Lord stirred up against Joram the Philistines and the Arabs and those who bordered on the Ethiopians; [j] 17 and they went up against Judah and overpowered it, and carried off all the goods they found in the king’s house, and his sons and his daughters as well; and no son was left to him except Ahaziah, the youngest of his sons.

18 And after all this the Lord struck him in the bowels with a sickness for which there is no healing. 19 And it went on day after day; and when the time of the days had come — two days — his bowels came out with the disease, and he died in a grievous sickness. And his people made no funeral procession for him, like the procession for his fathers. [k]

20 He was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And he departed with no praise, and was buried in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings. [l]