The Daily Audio Bible
Today's audio is from the CSB. Switch to the CSB to read along with the audio.
Joash Repairs the Temple
24 Joash[a] was seven years old when he became king, and he ruled as king in Jerusalem for forty years. His mother’s name was Zibiah from Beersheba.
2 Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest.
3 Jehoiada obtained two wives for him, and he fathered sons and daughters.
4 After this, it was on Joash’s heart to restore the House of the Lord, 5 so he gathered the priests and the Levites and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah and collect money from all Israel for the repairs to the house of your God. Do this annually. Get started immediately.”
The Levites, however, did not act on it quickly, 6 so the king summoned Jehoiada, the head of the project,[b] and said to him, “Why have you not required the Levites to collect from Judah and Jerusalem the tax which Moses, the servant of the Lord, established with the congregation of Israel for the Tent of Testimony?”[c]
7 (Because Athaliah was wicked, her sons had broken into the House of God and used all the dedicated things of the House of the Lord for the Baals.)
8 The king gave a command that a chest was to be made and set outside the gate of the House of the Lord.[d] 9 A proclamation was issued in Judah and Jerusalem that the tax imposed upon Israel in the wilderness by Moses, the servant of God, should be brought to the Lord. 10 All the officials and all the people rejoiced. They brought the money and dropped it into the chest until it was full.
11 From time to time the chest was delivered from the custody of the Levites to the king’s administrators. Whenever they saw that there was a large amount of silver in it, the secretary of the king and the administrator of the head priest came and emptied the chest. Then they would take the chest and return it to its place. They did this regularly and collected a large amount of silver.
12 The king and Jehoiada gave the silver to those carrying out the work on the House of the Lord. They hired stonemasons and carpenters to restore the House of the Lord, and also craftsmen who worked with iron and bronze to repair the House of the Lord.
13 The laborers carrying out the project worked hard, and the work of restoration moved forward because of the diligent work of their hands. They restored the House of God to its proper condition and strengthened it.
14 When they finished, they brought the rest of the silver to the king and to Jehoiada. They used it to make items for the House of the Lord, utensils for use in the service and for the burnt offerings, such as small dishes[e] and gold and silver vessels. So they offered burnt offerings in the House of the Lord continually, throughout all the days of Jehoiada.
Joash Turns Away From the Lord
15 Jehoiada grew old and full of days, and he died. He was one hundred thirty years old at his death.
16 They buried him in the City of David with the kings, because he had done good things for Israel in connection with God and his house.
17 After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and bowed down to the king. Then the king began to listen to them. 18 They abandoned the House of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherahs and the idols. Wrath fell upon Judah and Jerusalem because of their guilt.
19 God sent prophets among them to bring them back to the Lord. The prophets testified against them, but they did not listen.
20 The Spirit of God came upon[f] Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood in front of the people and said to them, “This is what God says. Why do you disobey the commandments of the Lord? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the Lord, he has forsaken you.”
21 But they conspired against him, and by the command of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the House of the Lord.
22 Thus King Joash did not remember the kindness which Jehoiada, his mentor,[g] had shown to him. Instead, he killed Jehoiada’s son. As Zechariah was dying, he said, “The Lord will see and avenge.”
The End of Joash
23 At the end of the year, the army of Aram marched out against Joash. They came to Judah and Jerusalem. They slaughtered all the officials from among the people, and they sent all their spoils to the king of Damascus. 24 Although the army of Aram had come with only a few men, the Lord delivered a very great army into their hand because Judah had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers. So the Arameans carried out judgment against Joash.
25 When they withdrew, leaving behind Joash, who was severely wounded, his own officials conspired against him because of the blood of the sons[h] of Jehoiada the priest. They violently attacked him on his bed, and he died. They buried him in the City of David, but they did not bury him in the tombs of the kings.
26 Those who conspired against him were Zabad son of Shimath, an Ammonite woman, and Jehozabad son of Shimrith, a Moabite woman.[i]
27 The accounts about his sons, about the many prophetic warnings against him, and about the restoration of the House of God are recorded in the notes in the Book of the Kings. His son Amaziah ruled as king in his place.
Amaziah of Judah
25 Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled as king in Jerusalem for twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.
2 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord but not with a completely committed heart.
3 As soon as the royal power was firmly in his possession, he put to death the officials who had assassinated his father the king. 4 But he did not put their children to death, because of what is written in the law in the Book of Moses, in which the Lord commanded, “Fathers are not to be put to death on account of their sons, and sons are not to be put to death on account of their fathers, but each person will die for his own sin.”[j]
War Against Edom
5 Amaziah then assembled Judah. He organized the troops on the basis of their fathers’ houses, under commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds for all of Judah and Benjamin. He took a count of all of those who were twenty years old and older. He found three hundred thousand men capable of going to war, able to handle spear and shield.
6 He also hired from Israel one hundred thousand powerful warriors for one hundred talents of silver.
7 A man of God came to him, saying, “O King, the army of Israel must not go along with you because the Lord is not with Israel. He is not with any of these descendants of Ephraim. 8 Even if you go and you take action, and you are strong for battle, God will defeat you in the face of the enemy, because God has power both to help and to defeat.”
9 Amaziah said to the man of God, “What am I to do about the hundred talents I gave to the army of Israel?”
The man of God answered, “The Lord is able to give to you much more than that.”
10 So Amaziah dismissed the troops who had come to him from Ephraim. They were told to return home, but they were very angry against Judah. They returned to their homes, burning with anger.
11 But Amaziah took courage. He led his troops out to the Valley of Salt, where he struck down ten thousand men of Seir. 12 The men of Judah captured ten thousand of them alive. They took them to the top of a cliff and threw them down from the top of the cliff. All of them were dashed to pieces.
13 But the men from the army, whom Amaziah had not allowed to go with him to battle, attacked the cities of Judah from Samaria to Beth Horon. They killed three thousand people from those cities. They also carried off a lot of plunder.
14 After Amaziah came back from the slaughter of the Edomites, he brought with him the gods of the men of Seir and set them up as his own gods. He worshipped them and made offerings to them.
15 The Lord was angry with Amaziah, so he sent a prophet to him, who said to him, “Why are you seeking the gods of another people, gods who did not deliver their own people from your hand?”
16 But while he was speaking to him, the king said to him, “Have we made you an advisor to the king? Stop! Why should you be struck down?”
So the prophet stopped, but he said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you because you have done this, and you have not listened to my advice.”
Israel Defeats Judah
17 After consulting with his advisors, Amaziah king of Judah sent a challenge to Joash son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel: “Come. We will confront each other face-to-face.”
18 Joash king of Israel sent a response to Amaziah king of Judah:
A thorn bush in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon: “Give your daughter to my son as his wife.” But a wild animal in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thorn bush.
19 You have congratulated yourself for striking down Edom, and your heart has given you confidence to boast. But now stay home. Why should you stir up trouble? You will fall, and Judah will fall with you.
20 But Amaziah did not listen, because this was from God, in order that he might hand them over to Israel, because they had sought the gods of Edom.
21 Joash king of Israel attacked, so he and Amaziah king of Judah confronted each other face-to-face at Beth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 22 Judah was defeated by Israel, and each man fled to his tent.
23 At Beth Shemesh Joash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Ahaziah, and brought him to Jerusalem. Joash broke down six hundred feet of the wall of Jerusalem, from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate. 24 Joash took all the gold and silver, all the articles that he found with Obed Edom in the House of God and in the treasuries of the king’s palace. He also took Amaziah’s sons as hostages and returned to Samaria.
Amaziah’s Death
25 Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah lived for fifteen years after the death of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel.
26 The rest of the deeds of Amaziah, from the first to the last, are they not written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel?
27 After Amaziah had turned away from the Lord, a conspiracy was formed against him in Jerusalem, so he fled to Lachish. But they sent men after him to Lachish, and they killed him there. 28 They brought him back on horses and buried him with his fathers in the City of Judah.
Offer Your Bodies to God as Living Sacrifices
12 Therefore I urge you, brothers,[a] by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice—holy and pleasing to God—which is your appropriate worship. 2 Also, do not continue to conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you test and approve what is the will of God—what is good, pleasing, and perfect.
Humbly Use the Gifts God Gave You
3 So by the grace given to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought, but think in a way that results in sound judgment, as God distributed a measure of faith to each of you. 4 For we have many members in one body, and not all the members have the same function. 5 In the same way, though we are many, we are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
6 We have different gifts, according to the grace God has given us. If the gift is prophecy, do it in complete agreement with the faith.[b] 7 If it is serving, then serve. If it is teaching, then teach. 8 If it is encouraging, then encourage. If it is contributing, be generous. If it is leadership, be diligent. If it is showing mercy, do it cheerfully.
Guidelines for Christian Living
9 Do not just pretend to love others. Hate what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another with brotherly love. Think of others as deserving more honor than yourselves. 11 Do not be lagging behind in zeal, but be fervent in spirit, as you continue to serve the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope. Endure trials patiently. Persist in prayer. 13 Share with the saints who are in need. Be quick to welcome strangers as guests.
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless, and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who are rejoicing; weep with those who are weeping. 16 Have the same respect for one another. Do not be arrogant, but associate with the humble. Do not think too highly of yourselves.
17 Do not pay anyone back evil for evil. Focus on those things that everyone considers noble. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, maintain peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay,”[c] says the Lord. 20 But:
If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him a drink.
For by doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.[d]
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
The Greater Power of God
19 But you, O Lord, do not be distant.
O my Strength, come quickly to help me.
20 Deliver my life from the sword,
my only life from the power of the dog.
21 Save me from the mouth of the lion.
From the horns of the wild oxen you have answered me.[a]
Part Two: The Messiah’s Glory
The Messiah’s Vow
22 I will declare your name to my brothers.
In the midst of the congregation I will praise you.
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!
Stand in awe of him, all you descendants of Israel!
24 For he has not despised nor detested the affliction of the afflicted.
He has not hidden his face from him,
but when he cried out to him, he heard.
25 You are the source of my praise in the great congregation.[b]
I will fulfill my vows in the presence of those who fear him.
The Glory of Messiah’s Kingdom
26 The poor will eat and be satisfied.
Those who seek him will praise the Lord—
may he live in your hearts forever![c]
27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations will bow down before you.
28 For the kingdom belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
29 All the rich of the earth will eat and bow down.
All who go down to the dust will kneel before him—
those who cannot keep themselves alive.[d]
30 Descendants will serve him.
For generations people will be told about the Lord.
31 They will come and proclaim his righteousness
to a people yet to be born—
because he has done it.
8 When a king sits on his throne as judge,
he winnows out all evil with his eyes.
9 Who can say, “I have purified my heart.
I am cleansed from my sinfulness”?
10 Differing weights and differing measures—
both of them are disgusting to the Lord.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.