2Kings 13:1 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.(capital city of Israel).and reigned seventeen years.

The variance in years {23rd year in this verse and 37th year in verse 10, the difference being 14 years} when comparing verse 10 below is due to Jehoahaz being associated with his father Jehu for several years in the government of the country before the death of his father and that these years were counted as a part of his reign, this in view the fact that Jehu was an old man when he died and may have been incapacitated for the full discharge of administrative duties before his end came.....comprised with.International Standard Bible Encyclopedia.

2Kings 13:2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord and followed the sins of Jeroboam I the son of Nebat, which made Israel to sin; he departed not therefrom.

2Kings 13:3 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 Benhadad the son of Hazael, all their days.

2Kings 13:4 And Jehoahaz besought the Lord and the Lord hearkened unto him, for he saw the oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria.oppressed them.

2Kings 13:5 And the Lord gave Israel a saviour.(but God didn't do this immediately; both Joash and later Jeroboam II carried it out:.2Kings 13:25; 14:25), so that they went out from under the hand of the Syrians and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents, as beforetime.

2Kings 13:6 Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam I, who made Israel sin, but walked therein and there remained the grove also in Samaria. 

2Kings 13:7 Neither did he leave of the people to Jehoahaz but only fifty horsemen and ten chariots and ten thousand footmen, for the king of Syria had destroyed them.(by greatly limiting them).and had made them like the dust by threshing.

2Kings 13:8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz and all that he did and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

This was a different book than either of the books of Chronicles that are included in the.Bible.

2Kings 13:9 And Jehoahaz slept with his fathers and they buried him in Samaria and Joash.(also known as Jehoash {next verse below}, a king of Israel; not the 'Joash' in the next verse, but the 'Jehoash' in the next verse).his son reigned in his stead.

2Kings 13:10 In the thirty and seventh year of Joash king of.Judah.began Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz to reign over.Israel.in Samaria and reigned sixteen years.

2Kings 13:10 In the thirty and seventh year of Joash king of.Judah.began Jehoash.(Jehoash is known by two names, Jehoash and  'Joash' as in the above verse, who is not the same Joash as in this verse, one being a king of Israel and the other a king of Judah).the son of Jehoahaz to reign over.Israel.in Samaria.(capital of ancient Israel; the names Israel & Samaria being often interspersed).and reigned sixteen years.

2Kings 13:11 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam I the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, but he walked therein.

2Kings 13:12,13 And the rest of the acts of Joash and all that he did and his might wherewith he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? And Joash slept with his fathers and Jeroboam II sat upon his throne and Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

2Kings 13:14-16 Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died.

Barnes Notes: The closing scene of Elisha's life. It was now at least sixty-three years since his call by God, so that he was at this time very possibly above ninety. He seems to have lived in almost complete retirement from the time he sent the young prophet to anoint Jehu king. The story:.2Kings 9:1 to 10:28. And now it was not Elijah who sought the king, but the king who sought him. Apparently, the special function of the two great Israelite prophets Elijah and Elisha, was to counteract the noxious influence of the satanic Baalistic rites and when these ceased, their extraordinary ministry came to an end. And so it is again today with the eradication of evils caused by the Satan worshipping cabal.

2Kings 13:15,16 And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him and wept over his face and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof. And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows. And he took unto him bow and arrows. And he said to the king of Israel, put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it. And Elisha put his hands upon the king's hands.

2Kings 13:17 And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot. And he said, The arrow of the Lord's deliverance and the arrow of deliverance from Syria. For you shall smite the Syrians in Aphek, till you have consumed them.

2Kings 13:18 And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice and stayed.

2Kings 13:19 And the man of God was wroth with him and said, You should have smitten five or six times, then had you smitten Syria till you had consumed it. Whereas now you shall smite Syria but thrice.(three times).

2Kings 13:20,21 And Elisha died and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year. And it came to pass, as they were burying a man that behold, they spied a band of men and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha. And when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood up on his feet.

2Kings 13:20,21 And Elisha died and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year. And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha.(the graves of the ancient Israelites were not pits dug in the ground, like ours, but caves or cells excavated in the side of a rock, the mouth of the cave being ordinarily shut by a heavy stone). And when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood up on his feet.({*} coffins were not used by them, the body was simply wrapped or swathed in grave-clothes).

2Kings 13:24 So Hazael king of Syria died and Benhadad his son reigned in his stead. 

2Kings 13:25 And.Jehoash.the son of Jehoahaz.(king of Israel).took again out of the hand of Benhadad the son of Hazael, the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did.Joash.beat him and recovered the cities of Israel.

2Kings 13:25 And.Jehoash.(Jehoash was also called Joash, the king of.Israel; there is also a Jehoash/Joash, being a king of.Judah).the son of Jehoahaz.(king of Israel).took again out of the hand of Benhadad the son of Hazael, the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did.Joash.(here to, to make it clear, Joash was also called Jehoash, this Jehoash/Joash being the king of.Israel; there is also a Jehoash/Joash, being a king of.Judah).beat him and recovered the cities of Israel..(he was one of the saviors verse 5 was talkiing about)

2Kings 14:1 In the second year of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of.Israel.reigned Amaziah the son of Joash king of.Judah.

2Kings 14:2,3 He was twenty and five years old when he began to reign and reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, yet not like David his forefather. He did according to all things as Joash.(the.Israel.king).his father did.

2Kings 14:4 Howbeit the high places were not taken away. As yet the people did sacrifice and burnt incense on the high places.

2Chronicles 33:1-3.

2Kings 14:5,6 And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his hand, that he slew his servants which had slain the king his father. But the children of the murderers he slew not.(why?.2Chronicles 25:4), according unto that which is written in the book of the law of Moses, wherein the Lord commanded, saying, The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children be put to death for the fathers, but every man shall be put to death for his own sin.

2Kings 14:7 He slew of Edom in the valley of salt ten thousand and took Sela by war and called the name of it Joktheel unto this day.

2Kings 14:7 He slew of Edom in the valley of salt ten thousand and took Sela.(in the original, 'Sela' means 'the rock'; also known as Petra {the Greek word for rock}, the capital Edomite city, situated in the great valley extending from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea).by war and called the name of it Joktheel.(means 'subdued by God').unto this day.

2Kings 14:8 Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us look one another in the face.(2Chronicles 25:17). 

2Kings 14:9 And Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give your daughter to my son to be his woman. And there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon and trode down the thistle.

2Kings 14:10 You have indeed smitten Edom and your heart has lifted you up. Glory of this and tarry at home, for why should you meddle to your hurt, that you should fall, even you and Judah with you?

2Kings 14:11,12 But Amaziah would not hear. Therefore Jehoash king of.Israel.went up and he and Amaziah king of.Judah.looked one another in the face at Bethshemesh, which belongs to Judah. And Judah was put to the worse before Israel and they fled every man to their tents.

2Kings 14:13 And Jehoash king of.Israel.took Amaziah king of.Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah at Bethshemesh and came to Jerusalem and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits.

2Kings 14:14,15 And he took all the gold and silver and all the vessels that were found in the house of the Lord and in the treasures of the king's house and hostages and returned to Samaria. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did and his might and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

2Kings 14:16 And Jehoash slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel and Jeroboam II his son reigned in his stead.

2Kings 14:17,18 And Amaziah the son of Joash king of.Judah.lived after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of.Israel.fifteen years. And the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

2Kings 14:19 Now they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem and he fled to Lachish, but they sent after him to Lachish and slew him there. 

2Kings 14:20 And they brought him on horses and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David.

2Kings 14:21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah.(he was also known as Uzziah), which was sixteen years old and made him king instead of his father Amaziah.

2Kings 14:22 He built Elath and restored it to Judah after that the king slept with his fathers.

2Kings 14:23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of.Joash king of Judah, Jeroboam.(Jeroboam II).the son of.Joash king of Israel.began to reign in Samaria and reigned forty and one years.

2Kings 14:24 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam.(Jeroboam I).the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.

2Kings 14:25 He restored the coast of Israel from the entering of Hamath unto the sea of the plain, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which he spake by the hand of his servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet, which was of Gathhepher.

2Kings 14:25 He restored the coast of Israel from the entering of Hamath unto the sea of the plain, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel.(though Jeroboam II was overall an evil king, he unwittingly did what God wanted, showing that God can work his purposes through.anyone.and even anything); Jeroboam II here was the savior predicted in.2Kings 13:5), which he spake by the hand of his servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet, which was of Gathhepher.(a town of Lower Galilee, about 5 miles from Nazareth).

2Kings 14:26,27 For the Lord saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter, for there was not any shut up, nor any left, nor any helper for Israel. And the Lord said not that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, but he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam II the son of Joash.

2Kings 14:26,27 For the Lord saw the affliction of Israel.(as was done by the Syrians under Hazael and Benhadad:.2Kings 13:3), that it was very bitter, for there was not any shut up, nor any left, nor any helper for Israel. And the Lord said not that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, but he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam II the son of Joash.

2Kings 14:28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam II and all that he did and his might, how he warred and how he recovered Damascus and Hamath, which belonged to Judah, for Israel, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

2Kings 14:29 And Jeroboam II slept with his fathers, even with the kings of Israel and Zachariah his son reigned in his stead.

2Kings 15:1 In the twenty and seventh year of Jeroboam II king of Israel began Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah to reign. 

2Kings 15:1 In the twenty and seventh year of Jeroboam II king of Israel began Azariah.(there is also another king who had one of his names, that being Azariah, who was earlier also a king of Judah).son of Amaziah king of Judah to reign.

2Kings 15:2 Sixteen years old was he when he began to reign and he reigned two and fifty years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem.

2Kings 15:3 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done,

2Kings 15:4-6.Save that the high places were not removed. The people sacrificed and burnt incense still on the high places. And the Lord smote the king, so that he was a leper unto the day of his death and dwelt in a several.(separate).house.(he had leprosy). And Jotham the king's son was over the house, judging the people of the land. And the rest of the acts of Azariah and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 

2Kings 15:7 So Azariah slept with his fathers and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David and Jotham his son reigned in his stead. 

2Kings 15:8 In the thirty and eighth year of Azariah king of.Judah.did Zachariah the son of Jeroboam II reign over Israel in Samaria six months.

2Kings 15:9 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, as his fathers had done. He departed not from the sins of Jeroboam I the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.

2Kings 15:10 And Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him and smote him.(Zachariah, verse 8, above).before the people and slew him and reigned in his stead.

This was in B.C.E. 772 and Shallum only reigned one month before he too was killed in Samaria by Menahem the son of Gadi.

2Kings 15:11 And the rest of the acts of Zachariah, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 

2Kings 15:12 This was the word of the Lord which he spake unto Jehu, saying, Thy sons shall sit on the throne of Israel unto the fourth generation. And so it came to pass.

2Kings 15:13 Shallum.(there were two other Shallums, another one of Israel and one of Judah, who was also known as Jehoahaz).the son of Jabesh began to reign in the nine and thirtieth year of Uzziah king of Judah and he reigned a full month in Samaria,

2Kings 15:14 For Menahem the son of Gadi went up from Tirzah.(1Kings 16:23).and came to Samaria and smote Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria and slew him and reigned in his stead. 

2Kings 15:15 And the rest of the acts of Shallum and his conspiracy which he made, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

2Kings 15:16 Then Menahem smote Tiphsah and all that were therein and the coasts thereof from Tirzah, because they opened not to him, therefore he smote it and all the women therein that were with child he ripped up.

2Kings 15:16 Then Menahem smote Tiphsah.(American Tract Society Dictionary:."The ancient Thapsacus, an important city on the western bank of the Euphrates River, which constituted the northeastern extremity of Solomon's dominions:.1Kings 4:24. The ford at this place being the last one on the Euphrates towards the south, its possession was important to Solomon in his design to attract the trade of the East.") and all that were therein and the coasts thereof from Tirzah, because they opened not to him, therefore he smote it and all the women therein that were with child he ripped up.

Some of them way back then were cruel, just as the pedophile controllers (see the Janet Ossebaard documentary reports) today are, that are being rounded up for justice by Trump and the Alliance militaries.

2Kings 15:17,18 In the nine and thirtieth year of Azariah king of.Judah.began Menahem the son of Gadi to reign over.Israel.and reigned ten years in Samaria. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not all his days from the sins of Jeroboam I the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. 

2Kings 15:19 And Pul the king of Assyria came against the land and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand.(Menahem bought him off).

2Kings 15:20 And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria.(steal from one and give to another so one's selfish evil ways can continue; evil Menahem bought off the king of Assyria). So the king of Assyria turned back and stayed not there in the land.

2Kings 15:21 And the rest of the acts of Menahem and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

2Kings 15:22 And Menahem slept with his fathers and Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead.

2Kings 15:23,24 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of.Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over.Israel.in Samaria and reigned two years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from the sins of Jeroboam-I the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.

2Kings 15:25 But Pekah the son of Remaliah, a captain of his, conspired against him and smote him in Samaria, in the palace of the king's house, with Argob and Arieh and with him fifty men of the Gileadites and he killed him and reigned in his room.

2Kings 15:26 And the rest of the acts of Pekahiah and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

2Kings 15:27,28 In the two and fiftieth year of Azariah king of.Judah,.Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over.Israel.in Samaria and reigned twenty years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from the sins of Jeroboam I the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. 

2Kings 15:29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglathpileser king of Assyria and took Ijon and Abelbethmaachahand Janoah and Kedesh and Hazor.and Gilead and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali.(map).and carried them captive to Assyria.

2Kings 15:30 And Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah.(both Israelitish kings).the son of Remaliah and smote him and slew him and reigned in his stead in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.(Judaic kings).

2Kings 15:31 And the rest of the acts of Pekah and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

2Kings 15:32 In the second year of Pekah, the son of Remaliah.(a captain in the Syrian army), king of Israel began Jotham the son of Uzziah king of Judah to reign.

2Kings 15:33,34 Five and twenty years old was he when he began to reign and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord. He did according to all that his father Uzziah had done.

2Kings 15:35 Howbeit the high places were not removed. The people sacrificed and burned incense still in the high places. He built the higher gate of the house of the Lord.(to protect the temple  from any attack from the north).

2Kings 15:36 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 

2Kings 15:37 In those days the Lord began to send against Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah.

2Kings 15:38 And Jotham slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father.(that is, the lineage goes back to David; David wasn't his immediate father, Uzziah was {verse 32 above}).and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.

2Kings 16:1 In the seventeenth year of Pekah.(king of.Israel), the son of Remaliah.(a captain in the Syrian army), Ahaz the son of Jotham king of.Judah.began to reign. 

2Kings 16:2 Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.(capital of Judah; Samaria was the capital of Israel; map).and did not that which was right in the sight of the Lord his God, like David his father did.

2Kings 16:3,4 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel. And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places and on the hills and under every green tree.

2Kings 16:5 Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him.

2Kings 16:6 At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria and drave those of the tribe of Judah from Elath and the Syrians came to Elath and dwelt there unto this day.

2Kings 16:7 So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son. Come up and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria and out of the hand of the king of Israel, which rises up against me.

2Kings 16:8,9 And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasures of the king's house and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria. And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him, for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus and took it and carried the people of it captive to Kir and slew Rezin.

2Kings 16:10-16 And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglathpileser king of Assyria and saw an altar that was at Damascus and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar and the 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 Urijah the priest made it according to the plan king Ahaz brought back from Damascus. And when the king was come from Damascus, he saw the altar and the king approached to the altar and offered thereon. And he burnt his burnt offering and his meat offering and poured his drink offering and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar. And he brought also the brasen altar, which was before the Lord, from the forefront of the house, from between the altar and the house of the Lord and put it on the north side of the altar. And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt offering and the evening meat offering and the king's burnt sacrifice and his meat offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land and their meat offering and their drink offerings and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt offering and all the blood of the sacrifice and the brasen altar shall be for me to enquire by. Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded.

2Kings 16:18 And the covert.(a portico).for the sabbath that they had built in the house.(the temple).and the king's entry without, turned he from the house of the Lord for the king of Assyria.

JFB's Commentary: A private external entrance for the king into the temple. The change made by Ahaz consisted in removing both of these into the temple from fear of the king of Assyria, that in case of a siege, he might secure the entrance of the temple from him.

2Kings 16:19 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

2Kings 16:20 And Ahaz slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead.

2Kings 17:1,2 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel nine years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him. 

2Kings 17:3 Against him came up Shalmaneser V king of Assyria and Hoshea became his servant and gave him presents.

2Kings 17:4 And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea, for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt and brought no present to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year, therefore the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in prison.

2Kings 17:4 And the king of Assyria.(who at this time was Shalmaneser-v).found conspiracy in Hoshea.(Hoshea was Israel's last king, successor of Pekah, whom he slew in B.C.E. 730:.2Kings 15:30. Hoshea reigned nine years and was then carried away captive by Shalmaneser V in B.C.E. 721, see verses here in chapter 17 from 1-6 and in 18:9-12), for he.(Hoshea).had sent messengers to So king of Egypt.(Pharaoh 'So' also called 'Sevechus' was the Pharaoh at this time).and brought no present.(actually was tribute/taxes).to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year, therefore the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in prison.

2Kings 17:5,6 Then the king of Assyria.(who at this time was Shalmaneser, who succeeded Tiglathpileser III).came up throughout all the land and went up to Samaria.(Samaria is synonymous with Israel).and besieged it three years. In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away into Assyria.(2Chronicles 36:10).and placed them in Halah.(a district of Media).and in Habor by the river of Gozan.(on the upper part of the river Habor, this region called Gozan).and in the cities of the Medes.

Concise Bible Dictionary:."Habor is now called Khabour. The name Habor refers to both a river and the province through which it flowed. The name has been found on some of the ancient Assyrian monuments. In ancient histories it has borne the names of Aborrhas, Aburas, Abora and Chaboras, etc.")

2Kings 17:7 For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt.(*), from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.(which Pharaoh was this one?).and had feared other Gods.(of which they had adopted many),

2Kings 17:8 And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel and of the kings of Israel, which they had made.(*).

2Kings 17:9-12 And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the Lord their God and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. And they set them up images and groves in every high hill and under every green tree. And there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the heathen whom the Lord carried away before them and wrought wicked things to provoke the Lord to anger, for they served idols, whereof the Lord had said unto them, you shall not do this thing.

2Kings 17:13 Yet the Lord testified against Israel and against Judah, by all the prophets and by all the seers, saying, Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.

2Kings 17:14 Notwithstanding they would not hear.(Jeremiah 44:16,17), but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the Lord their God.

2Kings 17:15 And they rejected his statutes and his covenant that he made with their fathers.(Genesis 22:17,18).and his testimonies which he testified against them.(the people knew what God thought of how their forefathers had been, but it made no difference to them in wanting to be any better).and they followed vanity and became vain and went after.(followed them to learn their practices).the heathen that were round about them, concerning whom the Lord had charged them, that they should not do like them.

2Kings 17:16-19 And they left all the commandments of the Lord.(they just didn't want anything to do with the real God:.Jeremiah 44:16,17 and why were some like that and others not so much and yet others, not at all like that?).their God and made them molten images, even two calves and made a grove and worshipped all the host of heaven and served Baal. And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire and used divination and enchantments.(to observe the signs or omens).and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger. Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them out of his sight. There was none left but the tribe of Judah only. Also Judah kept not the commandments of the Lord their God, but walked in the statutes.(meaning, the customs, the ways of; how Israel did things regarding the false Gods they took to heart).of Israel which they made.

They made their own form of worship based on the many idols they copied from the pagan nations around them, which were made with their own hands, often out of wood. They never understood that to worship God correctly is to give attention to the things of God only; some things of which are judgment, mercy and truth:.Psalms 89:14; life would have been so much better for them had they lived this way:.Exodus 19:5. But it takes effort. The dark side is out to thwart you. What effort does it take?

2Kings 17:20 And the Lord rejected all the seed of Israel and afflicted them and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight.

2Kings 17:20 And the Lord rejected all the seed of Israel.('seed of Israel' meaning here the man named Israel from whom came sons and descendants of them who became the nations of Israel and Judah, not known at all by the name 'Jew').and afflicted them and delivered them into the hand of spoilers.(2Chronicles 36:10), until he had cast them out of his sight.

2Kings 17:21 For he rent Israel from the house of David.(the house of David, meaning Judah. Israel and Judah were already separate at this time, so why does it say this?.2Samuel 19:41-43).and they.(the house of David, that is, the nation of Judah; see note in above verse).made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king and Jeroboam drave Israel away from following the Lord and made them sin a great sin. 

2Kings 17:22,23 For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did. They departed not from them until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.

2Kings 17:24 And the king of Assyria.(Sargon at this time).brought men from Babylon.and from Cuthah and from Ava and from Hamath and from Sepharvaim.(Isaiah 37:13).and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel and they possessed Samaria and dwelt in the cities thereof.

2Kings 17:25-28 And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the Lord.(captivity wasn't enough to awaken them to God). Therefore the Lord sent lions among them, which slew some of them. Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which you have removed and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land.(finally, after three captivities, Israel started to awaken to God). Therefore he has sent lions among them and behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land. Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom you brought from thence and let them go and dwell there and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land. Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel and taught them how they should fear the Lord.('fear the Lord' is translated language for learning about God, that the true God is real, alive and loves you, but you have turned your back on Him and followed satanic things:.Jeremiah 44:16,17).

2Kings 17:29,30 Howbeit every nation made Gods of their own and put them in the houses of the high places which the.Samaritans.had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt. And the men of Babylon made.Succothbenoth.and the men of Cuth made.Nergal.and the men of Hamath made.Ashima.

2Kings 17:29,30.Howbeit every nation made Gods.of their own.(Jeremiah 44:16,17).and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt. And the men of Babylon made.Succothbenoth.(Concise Bible Dictionary:."a Goddess originating in Samaria, worshipped by the Babylonians; she was their Goddess of wisdom, lady of the deep and wife of Bel-merodach; the name has been traced to Zarpanit, also known as Beltia; in Sumero-Babylonian history the same was the consort of Marduk").and the men of Cuth made.Nergal.(one of the chief Gods of the Assyrians and Babylonians, the God of war and hunting; has many titles on the monuments, such as 'the God of the chase' and 'the king of battle').and the men of Hamath made.Ashima.

Ashima was an idol of the men of Hamath, introduced by the Hamathites, which were the colonists planted in Samaria by Esarhaddon king of Assyria. Ashima is represented as a goat with short hair, answering to the Egyptian form of the Greek God Pan, to whom the goat was sacred. And so there were many more Gods for the Israelities to adopt as they left the true God for the worship customs of the nations they came to be in. Seems like the Israelites were very curious about anything new.

2Kings 17:31 And the.Avites.made.Nibhaz.and.Tartak.and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to.Adrammelech and.Anammelech, the Gods of Sepharvaim.

2Kings 17:31 And the Avites.(aka Avims:.Deuteromony 2:23).made.Nibhaz.('barker' or 'to bark', the name of an idol, supposed to be an evil demon of the Zabians, set up in ancient Samaria by the Avites probably in the form of a colossal figure of a dog and somewhere formerly between Berytus and Tripolidog, it was a dogheaded human figure, like the Egyptian Anubis; also 'Botta' represents a bitch suckling a puppy which was on a slab at the entrance of a temple at Khorsabad).and Tartak.(a God the Avite colonists in Samaria created to represent darkness and the underworld; it was worshiped in the form of a donkey).and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to.Adrammelech.(Adrammelech was one of the Gods adored by the inhabitants of Sepharvaim who brought idols when they settled in Samaria after being transported there by Sargon in the stead of those Israelites who were carried beyond the Euphrates by Shalmaneser; Adrammelech was the sun-God who was regarded as a destroying being and was represented as a peacock or a mule; Anammelech is the female, sister deity, the moon-God, represented as a pheasant or a horse; children were sacrificed by being burned in honor of these false deities).and.Anammelech, the Gods of Sepharvaim.(verse 24 above).

2Kings 17:32,33 So they feared the Lord and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places. They feared the Lord, yet served their own Gods after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.

2Kings 17:32,33 So they feared the Lord and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.(they knew the Creator existed, but they felt that they should set up their own religion and worship the Lord as.they.saw fit and it wasn't good:.Jeremiah 44:16,17). They feared the Lord, yet served their own Gods.(some of their Gods: 2Kings 17:29,30).after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.

They followed the customs of the pantheistic nations who served other Gods that they left Egypt to get away from; such are the idiot ways of people (vote this party in, vote that party in, yet behind the scenes, those in control remain so and the people just never seem to learn and that's because of the consciousness they carry with them). Just as in Paul's time, so much later in the New Testament, they wanted to be sure that all 'Gods' were pleased', that 'all their bases were covered';.Adam Clarke's Commentary;."They incorporated the worship of the true God with that of their idols. They were afraid of Jehovah, who had sent lions among them and therefore they offered him a sort of worship that he might not thus afflict them, but they served other Gods, devoted themselves affectionately to them, because their worship was such as gratified their grossest passions and most sinful propensities":.Romans 1:28.

2Kings 17:34-36 Unto this day they do after the former manners, they fear not the Lord, neither do they after their statutes or after their ordinances.(they don't even follow the ways they themselves set up in place of God's ways).or after the law and commandment which the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel.(Jacob's name was changed to Israel); With whom the Lord had made a covenant and charged them, saying, You shall not fear other Gods nor bow yourselves to them nor serve them nor sacrifice to them. But the Lord who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall you fear and him shall you worship and to him shall you do sacrifice.

But instead they sacrificed to the silly idols they had made with their own hands in copying the idolatrous nations around them.

2Kings 17:37 And the statutes and the ordinances and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, you shall observe to do for evermore and you shall not fear other Gods.

2Kings 17:38-40 And the covenant that I have made with you you shall not forget, neither shall you fear other Gods. But the Lord your God you shall fear and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies. Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner. 

2Kings 17:41 So these nations feared God, but served their graven images.(though they wanted nothing to do with the ways of God, they respected that God indeed did exist), both their children and their children's children as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.

2Kings 18:1 Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of.Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of.Judah.began to reign. Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem.

2Kings 18:2,3 His mother's name also was Abi.(short for Abijah:.2Chronicles 29:1,2), the daughter of Zachariah. And he did that which was right in the sight of God, according to all that David his forefather did.

2Kings 18:4 He removed the high places and brake the images and cut down the groves.and brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made.(Numbers 21:9), for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it and he called it Nehushtan.(means it's only just 'a piece of brass).

Hezekiah saw this idol the people worshipped, for what it was, just a piece of brass, which of course had no power to it, but to which the people had veneration toward, so he called it a derogatory name meaning 'it has no power, it's just a piece of brass'.

2Kings 18:5 He trusted in the God of Israel so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him.

2Kings 18:6 For he.(Hezekiah, verse 1 of this chapter).clave to God and departed not from following him, but kept the commandments of God Moses gave.

2Kings 18:7 And God was with him and he prospered whithersoever he went forth and he rebelled against the king of Assyria.(verses 9-12, below).and served him not.

It is understood his bad dad Ahaz paid tribute (large sums of goods and money) to Assyria and Hezekiah refused this imposition upon his people.

2Kings 18:8 He smote the Philistines, even unto Gaza and the borders thereof, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.

2Kings 18:9 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria and besieged it. 

2Kings 18:10,11 And at the end of three years they took it, even in the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria.(another name synonymous with Israel).was taken. And the king of Assyria did carry away Israel unto Assyria.(this was a captivity of Israel, not yet of Judah, which Hezekiah at his time, was king of).and put them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan and in the cities of the Medes.

2Kings 18:12 Because they obeyed not the voice of the true God, but transgressed his covenant and all that Moses the servant of God commanded and would not hear them, nor do them.

2Kings 18:13 Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did Sennacherib.(reigned B.C.E. 728-710).king of Assyria came up against all the fenced cities of Judah and took them.(took them under his control).

2Kings 18:14-16 And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria in Lachish.(a city in the southwest part of Judah that Sennacherib was busy vanquishing at the time:.2Chronicles 32:9; map), saying, I have offended.(Hezekiah being a good man, went to great lengths to keep peace with others, but he was no fool either, like Gedaliah was:.2Chronicles 32:7,8. We should also learn what we can about peace:.John 14:27; 16:33; 2Corinthians 13:11; Colossians 3:15; Hebrews 12:14; James 3:18; Psalms 34:14; Isaiah 9:6,7; *). In this reply from me, I say that which you put on me will I bear. And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold to be paid to Assyria. And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of God and in the treasures of the king's house. At that time did Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the temple of God and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.

Was a stupid thing to do, this sucking up to and giving to the Assyrians, not realizing you're dealing withs satanic ones where it's never enough.

2Kings 18:17 And the king of Assyria sent Tartan.(his name means 'commander-in-chief').and Rabsaris and Rabshakeh.(all were Sennacherib's representatives {viziers [important visitors]} who had a message from their king Sennacherib delivered by the Rabshakeh {refers to the one being the chief cup-bearer in these communicative royal exchanges} to Hezekiah).from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great host against Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they were come up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the fuller's field.(where clothes were washed). 

2Kings 18:18 And when they had called to the king, there came out to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, which was over the household and Shebna the scribe and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder.

2Kings 18:19 And Rabshakeh.(one of Sennacherib's messengers to Hezekiah).said unto them, Speak you now to Hezekiah, Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this wherein you trust?

2Kings 18:20 What you say, they are but vain words when you say I have counsel and strength for the war. Now on whom do you trust, that you rebel against me?

Sennacherib was a monstrous.bully with even a larger ego.

2Kings 18:21 Now, behold, you trust upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt.(Hezekiah could call upon Egypt's help in needed), on which if a man lean, it will go into his hand and pierce it, so is this Pharaoh king of Egypt unto all that trust on him.(he's a nobody compared to the might of us in Assyria under king Sennacherib).

2Kings 18:22-25 But if you say unto me, that you trust God, is it not he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah had taken away and had said to Judah and Jerusalem, you shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem? Now therefore, I pray you, give pledges to my lord the king of Assyria and I will deliver you two thousand horses, if you be able on your part to set riders upon them. How then will you turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master's servants and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Am I now come up without the Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me, Go up against this land and destroy it.

2Kings 18:22-25 But if you say unto me.(here the Assyrian representatives under orders from their king Sennacherib, were speaking to the people over which Hezekiah was king and saying deprecating things about Hezekiah to turn them away from him and toward Sennacherib; it was a 'come with us, we'll treat you better' ruse), that you trust in God, is not that he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah had taken away and had said to Judah and Jerusalem, you shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem.(don't tell me your trust is in God, because you've taken away all the worship places)? Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges.(valuable things).to my lord the king of Assyria and I will deliver thee two thousand horses, if you be able on your part to set riders upon them.(if you pledge to us, we'll give you more horses than I know you have riders for). How then will you turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master's servants and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen?.(with that kind of offer, how can you ever consider anything else?).Am I now come up without the Lord against this place to destroy it?.(do you think I came all this way with my army, thinking God was not on my side?).The Lord said to me, Go up against this land and destroy it.(God told me to come and destroy you, he was telling them this to intimidate them).

2Kings 18:26 Then said Eliakim the son of Hilkiah and Shebna and Joah, unto Rabshakeh.(verse 19 above), Speak, I pray thee and to your servants in the Syrian language, for we know that language. Don't talk with us in the Jews' language because the ears of the people that are on the wall are listening.

They didn't want the people to hear that they were being intimidated.

2Kings 18:27 But Rabshakeh said unto them, Has my master sent me to your master and to you to speak these words? Has he not sent me to the men which sit on the wall, that they may eat their own dung and drink their own piss with you?

2Kings 18:28 Then Rabshakeh stood and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language and spake, saying, Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria.

2Kings 18:29 Thus says the king.(of Assyria), Let not Hezekiah deceive you, for he shall not be able to deliver you out of his hand.

2Kings 18:30 Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in his God, saying, God will surely deliver us and this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.

2Kings 18:31 Hearken not to Hezekiah, for thus says the king of Assyria, Make an agreement with me by a present and come out to me and then eat you every man of his own vine and every one of his fig tree and drink you every one the waters of his cistern.

Everyone wants to be the greatest and rule the world and the Assyrians were no different than would be world controllers today, sucking you in with lies, promising you good and you not realizing it's a 'bait and switch'.

2Kings 18:32 Until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of oil olive and of honey, that you may live and not die and hearken not unto Hezekiah, when he tries to persuade you saying, The Lord will deliver us.

2Kings 18:33-35 Have any of the Gods of the nations delivered at all his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria?.(we are so great there is none that can deliver out of our hand).Where are the Gods of Hamath and of Arpad? Where are the Gods of Sepharvaim, Hena and Ivah? Have they delivered Samaria out of mine hand? Who are they among all the Gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of mine hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of mine hand? 

2Kings 18:36,37 But the people held their peace and answered him not a word, for Hezekiah the king's commandment was to answer him not. Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, which was over the household and Shebna the scribe and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent and told him the words of Rabshakeh.

2Kings 19:1-8 And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth and went into the house of the treu God. And he sent Eliakim, which was over the household and Shebna the scribe and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz. And they said unto him, Thus says Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble and of rebuke and blasphemy, for the children are come to the birth and there is not strength to bring forth. It may be our God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria, his master, has sent to reproach the living God and will reprove the words which God has heard. Wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that are left.

Barnes Notes:."The kingdom of Judah was the only remnant of God's people that was now left, after Galilee and Gilead and Samaria had all been carried away captive."

2Kings 19:5-7 So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah. And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall you say to your master, Thus says the true God, Be not afraid of the words which you have heard with which the servants of the king of Assyria.(which was at this time Sennacherib).have blasphemed me. Behold, I will send a blast upon him.(what the blast was).and he shall hear a rumor and shall return to his own land and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.

Sennacherib was killed by his own sons, verse 37.

2Kings 19:8 So Rabshakeh.(2Kings 18:19).returned and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah, for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.

2Kings 19:9 And when he heard that Tirhakah king of Ethiopia.(who became a pharaoh in Egypt), is come out to fight against you, Sennacherib sent messengers again unto Hezekiah,

Barnes Notes: The movements of Tirhakah caused Sennacherib to have to deal with this, so he sent a second embassy to Hezekiah, instead of marching in person against him.

2Kings 19:10-13 Saying, Thus shall you speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy God in whom thou trust deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.(at this time, that king was Sennacherib). Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly and shall you be delivered? Have the Gods of the nations delivered them which my fathers have destroyed, as Gozan and Haran and Rezeph and the children of Eden which were in Thelasar? Where is the king of Hamath and the king of Arpad and the king of the city of Sepharvaim.(Isaiah 37:13).and where are the kings now of Hena and Ivah? 

2Kings 19:14-19 And Hezekiah received the letter at the hand of the messengers and read it and Hezekiah went up into the house of God and spread it before the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed before God and said, O God of Israel, which dwells between the cherubims, you are God, even you alone, of all the kingdoms of the Earth. You have made heaven and Earth. God, bow down your ear and hear. Open God your eyes and see and hear the words of Sennacherib, which has sent to reproach the living God. Of a truth, God, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were no Gods, but only the work of men's hands, wood and stone, therefore they have destroyed them. Now therefore, O God, I beseech you, save us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the Earth may know that you are the one and only true God..(*)

2Kings 19:20-26 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus says the God of Israel, That which you have prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard. This is the word that I have spoken concerning him: The virgin the daughter of Zion has despised you and laughed you to scorn. The daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head at you, whom you have reproached and blasphemed and against whom you have exalted your voice and lifted up your eyes on high, even against the Holy One of Israel.(why so against God?). By your messengers you have reproached God in having said, With the multitude of my chariots I am come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon and will cut down the tall cedar trees thereof and the choice fir trees thereof and I will enter into the lodgings of his borders and into the forest of his Carmel.(means 'garden land' and is name of a mountain). I have digged and drunk strange waters and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of besieged places. Have you not heard long ago how I have done it and of ancient times that I have formed it? Now have I brought it to pass, that you should be laid waste in your fenced cities and put into ruinous heaps. Therefore the inhabitants were of small power to us. They were dismayed and confounded. They were as the grass of the field and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops and as corn blasted before it be grown up. 

2Kings 19:27-31 But I know your abode and your going out and your coming in and your rage against me. Because your rage against me and your tumult is come up into mine ears, therefore I will put my hook in your nose and my bridle in your lips and I will turn you back by the way by which you came. And this shall be a sign unto you, You shall eat this year such things as grow of themselves and in the second year that which springs of the same and in the third year sow you and reap and plant vineyards and eat the fruits thereof.(for three years you'll carry on with your present lifestyle). And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant and they that escape out of mount Zion. The zeal of the God of hosts shall do this.

2Kings 19:32 Therefore this says God concerning the king of Assyria.(who at the time was Sennacherib), He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank.(build up a mound high enough in front of an enemy's wall so it's easier to go over it).against it.

2Kings 19:33 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return and shall not come into this city, says the Lord.

2Kings 19:34 For I.(God).will defend this city, to save it for mine own sake and for my servant David's sake.

2Kings 19:35 And it came to pass that night, that the angel of God went out and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore.('score' is a group of 20, so 180).and five thousand.(so, 185,000). And when they.(Hezekiah and his people).arose early in the morning, behold, the Assyrians were all dead corpses.

God protects those who trust Him.

2Kings 19:36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went and returned and dwelt at Nineveh.

2Kings 19:37 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch.(an Assyrian God represented with the head of an eagle).his God, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.

....continues to Chapter 20

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