- Azariah son of Amaziah became king of Judah in Jeroboam's twenty-seventh year as king of Israel.
- He was only sixteen years old when he became king, and he ruled fifty-two years from Jerusalem, which was also the hometown of his mother Jecoliah.
- Azariah obeyed the LORD by doing right, as his father Amaziah had done.
- But Azariah did not destroy the local shrines, and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.
- The LORD punished Azariah with leprosy for the rest of his life. He wasn't allowed to live in the royal palace, so his son Jotham lived there and ruled in his place.
- Everything else Azariah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah.
- Azariah died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem. His son Jotham then became king.
- Zechariah son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Azariah's rule in Judah, but he ruled only six months from Samaria.
- Like his ancestors, Zechariah disobeyed the LORD by following the evil ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused the Israelites to sin.
- Shallum son of Jabesh plotted against Zechariah and killed him in public. Shallum then became king.
- So the LORD had kept his promise to Jehu that the next four kings of Israel would come from his family. Everything else Zechariah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.
- (SEE 15:11)
- Shallum became king of Israel in the thirty-ninth year of Azariah's rule in Judah. But only one month after Shallum became king,
- Menahem son of Gadi came to Samaria from Tirzah and killed him. Menahem then became king. The town of Tiphsah would not surrender to him, so he destroyed it and all the surrounding towns as far as Tirzah. He killed everyone living in Tiphsah, and with his sword he even ripped open pregnant women. Everything else Shallum did while he was king, including his plot against Zechariah, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.
- (SEE 15:14)
- (SEE 15:14)
- Menahem became king of Israel in Azariah's thirty-ninth year as king of Judah, and he ruled Israel ten years from Samaria.
- He constantly disobeyed the LORD by following the example of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused the Israelites to sin.
- During Menahem's rule, King Tiglath Pileser of Assyria invaded Israel. He agreed to help Menahem keep control of his kingdom, if Menahem would pay him over thirty tons of silver.
- So Menahem ordered every rich person in Israel to give him at least one pound of silver, and he gave it all to Tiglath Pileser, who stopped his attack and left Israel.
- Everything else Menahem did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.
- Menahem died, and his son Pekahiah became king.
- Pekahiah became king of Israel in the fiftieth year of Azariah's rule in Judah, and he ruled two years from Samaria.
- He disobeyed the LORD and caused the Israelites to sin, just as Jeroboam son of Nebat had done.
- Pekah son of Remaliah was Pekahiah's chief officer, but he made plans to kill the king. So he and fifty men from Gilead broke into the strongest part of the palace in Samaria and murdered Pekahiah, together with Argob and Arieh. Pekah then became king.
- Everything else Pekahiah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.
- Pekah son of Remaliah became king of Israel in Azariah's fifty-second year as king of Judah, and he ruled twenty years from Samaria.
- He disobeyed the LORD and followed the evil example of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused the Israelites to sin.
- During Pekah's rule, King Tiglath Pileser of Assyria marched into Israel. He captured the territories of Gilead and Galilee, including the towns of Ijon, Abel-Bethmaacah, Janoah, Kedesh, and Hazor, as well as the entire territory of Naphtali. Then he took Israelites from those regions to Assyria as prisoners.
- In the twentieth year of Jotham's rule in Judah, Hoshea son of Elah plotted against Pekah and murdered him. Hoshea then became king of Israel.
- Everything else Pekah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.
- Jotham son of Azariah became king of Judah in the second year of Pekah's rule in Israel.
- Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled sixteen years from Jerusalem. His mother Jerusha was the daughter of Zadok.
- Jotham followed the example of his father by obeying the LORD and doing right.
- It was Jotham who rebuilt the Upper Gate that led into the court around the LORD's temple. But the local shrines were not destroyed, and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.
- Everything else Jotham did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah.
- During his rule, the LORD let King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah of Israel start attacking Judah.
- Jotham died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem, and his son Ahaz became king.
The following table shows the kings of both Judah and Israel that are listed in this chapter:
| Judah | Israel |
| Azariah (27th year of Jeroboam) | Jeroboam |
| Zechariah (38th year of Azariah) | |
| Shallum (39th year of Azariah) | |
| Menahem (39th year of Azariah) | |
| Pekahiah (50th year of Azariah) | |
| Jotham (2nd year of Pekah) | Pekah (52nd year of Azariah) |
| Ahaz (17th year of Pekah) |
Judah's kings during this period: Both Azariah (also known as Uzziah) and Jotham, kings of Judah were good kings as were their fathers. The only spiritual flaw in their leadership was that they allowed the high places to continue to exist in which the people worshipped the Lord in violation of the Mosaic law which required worship only at the temple. As noted in verse 5, Azariah had a skin disease the last years of his life. This was due to his pride. Details of his rule, which are provided in 2 Chronicles, indicate he was a strong king. Because of his successes he became proud and took it upon himself to usurp the role of the priests in the temple. Because of this brazen act, the Lord struck him with a skin disease. Nevertheless, Azariah reigned for 52 years. During the time in which he had the skin disease, his son Jotham ruled with him.
Little is noted in 2 Kings of Jotham's rule after his father died except that he reigned for 16 years, he did what was right in the Lord's sight, and he "built the Upper Gate of the Lord's temple." (15:35)
Israel's kings during this period: Jeroboam reigned in Israel 41 years and was and evil king has had been all those in Israel before him. He evidently died of natural causes. However, the next several kings in succession were assassinated by their successors. Shallum conspired and killed Zechariah in a public place. Even though the killing was witnessed, the people evidently supported him in becoming king, suggesting that Zechariah was not well supported by the people.
Menahem was commander of the army and apparently considered Shallum a usurper of the throne. Thus he set out to force his way to become king. He led the army to attack an Israelite city, Tiphsah, insisting the peole recognize him as king and when they didn't he violently destroyed the city even killing pregnant women. This tactic evidently intimidated the people enough that they finally recognized him as king.
Menahem died naturally and was succeeded by his son, Pekahiah. Pekahiah was assassinated by his successor, Pekah, who led 50 men to storm the palace, killing the king and a couple of his officials.
Testing of Judah: During the reign of Jotham in Judah, "the LORD began sending Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah against Judah." (15:37) Verse 34 already noted that Jotham did what was right in the Lord's sight. Rather than being the Lord's judgment, this pressure from Aram and Israel proved to be a test of faith for the Jotham.
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