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2 Kings 15

The chapter traces Israel’s violent succession and Assyrian losses while measuring both kingdoms’ rulers by YHWH’s judgment.

Azariah reigns in Judah while Israel passes through a succession of kings, several of whom seize power through murder. The account follows both kingdoms, judging their rulers by what is right or evil in YHWH’s sight. Menahem commits atrocities and pays Assyria to secure his throne; under Pekah, Assyria takes territory and captives. In Judah, Azariah and Jotham receive praise, though the high places remain. The chapter closes with YHWH sending enemies against Judah.

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1In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah began to reign.
3He did that which was right in the LORD’s eyes, according to all that his father Amaziah had done.
4However, the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and burned incense in the high places.
5The LORD struck the king, so that he was a leper to the day of his death, and lived in a separate house. Jotham, the king’s son, was over the household, judging the people of the land.
6Now the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
7Azariah slept with his fathers; and they buried him with his fathers in David’s city; and Jotham his son reigned in his place.
8In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in Samaria six months.
9He did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight, as his fathers had done. He didn’t depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
10Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and struck him before the people and killed him, and reigned in his place.
12This was the LORD’s word which he spoke to Jehu, saying, “Your sons to the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.” So it came to pass.
13Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah king of Judah, and he reigned for a month in Samaria.
14Menahem the son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, came to Samaria, struck Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria, killed him, and reigned in his place.
15Now 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.
16Then Menahem attacked Tiphsah and all who were in it and its border areas, from Tirzah. He attacked it because they didn’t open their gates to him, and he ripped up all their women who were with child.
18He did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight. He didn’t depart all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
19Pul the king of Assyria came against the land, and Menahem gave Pul one thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand.
20Menahem exacted the money from Israel, even from all the mighty men of wealth, from each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and didn’t stay there in the land.
23In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria for two years.
24He did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight. He didn’t depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
25Pekah the son of Remaliah, his captain, conspired against him and attacked him in Samaria, in the fortress of the king’s house, with Argob and Arieh; and with him were fifty men of the Gileadites. He killed him, and reigned in his place.
27In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria for twenty years.
28He did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight. He didn’t depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
29In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria.
30Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, attacked him, killed him, and reigned in his place, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.
32In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel, Jotham the son of Uzziah king of Judah began to reign.
34He did that which was right in the LORD’s eyes. He did according to all that his father Uzziah had done.
35However the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and burned incense in the high places. He built the upper gate of the LORD’s house.
36Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all that he did, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
37In those days, the LORD began to send Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah against Judah.
38Jotham slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in his father David’s city; and Ahaz his son reigned in his place.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
2 Kings 15:29Assyria’s capture of Israel’s towns and people turns the account of unstable kingship into a record of national loss.
2 Kings 15:19Menahem uses silver to purchase Assyrian support for his throne, placing the cost of his security on Israel’s wealthy men.
2 Kings 15:5YHWH strikes Azariah despite the favorable assessment of his reign, leaving Jotham to govern while his father lives apart.
Where this chapter reaches

2 Chronicles recounts the reigns of Uzziah and Jotham, sharing the account of Uzziah’s leprosy and Jotham’s work on the temple gate. Hosea shares this chapter’s concern with Israel’s dependence on Assyria, describing appeals to the foreign power whose intervention here brings tribute demands and captivity.

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Notice

After reading the whole chapter

What stands out in the contrast between the kings’ efforts to secure power and their people’s losses?

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How do the repeated judgments about each king shape your reading of their political achievements?

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Questions people ask about 2 Kings 15

Are Azariah and Uzziah the same person in 2 Kings 15?

Yes. The chapter uses both names for the same king of Judah, the son of Amaziah and father of Jotham. Verse 1 calls him Azariah, while verse 32 calls Jotham the son of Uzziah. The chapter does not explain why the king has two names.

Why did God strike Azariah with leprosy?

2 Kings 15 says that YHWH struck Azariah, but it gives no reason for the act. It records his separate residence and Jotham’s governing role. The fuller account in 2 Chronicles connects the disease with Uzziah’s attempt to burn incense in the temple despite the priests’ opposition.

Why are so many kings killed in 2 Kings 15?

The chapter records repeated conspiracies in Israel: Shallum kills Zechariah, Menahem kills Shallum, Pekah kills Pekahiah, and Hoshea kills Pekah. Each killer takes the throne. The account shows violent competition for royal power alongside persistent evil in YHWH’s sight, though it does not explain every conspirator’s motives.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).