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2 Chronicles 24
Legacy Standard Bible

Joash Reigns over Judah

24 (A)Joash was seven years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Zibiah from Beersheba. 2 (B)And Joash did what was right in the sight of Yahweh all the days of Jehoiada the priest. 3 And Jehoiada took up two wives for him, and he became the father of sons and daughters.

The Levites Did Not Act Quickly

4 Now it happened afterwards, that Joash [a]had in his heart (C)to restore the house of Yahweh. 5 And he gathered the priests and Levites and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah and gather money from all (D)Israel to [b]repair the house of your God [c]annually, and you shall do the matter quickly.” But the Levites did not act quickly. 6 So the king called for Jehoiada the chief priest and said to him, “Why have you not required the Levites to bring in from Judah and from Jerusalem (E)the levy fixed by Moses the servant of Yahweh on the congregation of Israel (F)for the tent of the testimony?” 7 For (G)the sons of the wicked Athaliah had broken into the house of God and even [d]used the holy things of the house of Yahweh for the Baals.

The House of Yahweh Restored

8 So the king said the word, and (H)they made a chest and put it outside by the gate of the house of Yahweh. 9 (I)And they [e]made a proclamation in Judah and Jerusalem to bring to Yahweh (J)the levy fixed by Moses the servant of God on Israel in the wilderness. 10 And all the officials and all the people were glad and brought in their levies and [f]dropped them into the chest until they had [g]finished. 11 Now it happened that whenever the chest was brought in to the king’s officer by the hand of the Levites, and when (K)they saw that there was much money, then the king’s scribe and the chief priest’s officer would come, empty the chest, take it, and return it to its place. Thus they did daily and collected much money. 12 And the king and Jehoiada gave it to those who did the work of the service of the house of Yahweh; and they hired masons and [h]carpenters to restore the house of Yahweh, and also craftsmen in iron and bronze to [i]repair the house of Yahweh. 13 So those who did the work labored, and the repair work progressed in their hands, and they [j]restored the house of God [k]according to its specifications and strengthened it. 14 When they had completed, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada; and it was made into utensils for the house of Yahweh, utensils for the ministry and the burnt offering, and pans and utensils of gold and silver. And they were offering burnt offerings in the house of Yahweh continually all the days of Jehoiada.

15 Then Jehoiada became old and full of days, and he died; he was 130 years old at his death. 16 They buried him (L)in the city of David among the kings, because he had done what is good in (M)Israel and [l]to God and His house.

17 But after the death of Jehoiada the officials of Judah came and bowed down to the king, and the king listened to them. 18 And they forsook (N)the house of Yahweh, the God of their fathers, and (O)served the [m]Asherim and the idols; so (P)wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their guilt. 19 Yet (Q)He sent prophets to them to bring them back to Yahweh; though they testified against them, they did not give ear.

People Conspire Against Zechariah

20 (R)Now the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest; and he stood above the people and said to them, “Thus says God, ‘(S)Why do you trespass against the commandments of Yahweh and do not succeed? (T)Because you have forsaken Yahweh, He has also forsaken you.’” 21 So (U)they conspired against him and at the command of the king they stoned him [n]to death in the court of the house of Yahweh. 22 Thus Joash the king did not remember the lovingkindness which his father Jehoiada had shown him, but he killed his son. And as he died he said, “May (V)Yahweh see and [o]avenge!”

Aram Comes Up Against Judah

23 Now it happened at the turn of the year that (W)the military force of the Arameans came up against him; and they came to Judah and Jerusalem, destroyed all the officials of the people from among the people, and sent all their spoil to the king of Damascus. 24 Indeed the military force of the Arameans came with a small number of men; yet (X)Yahweh gave a very great military force into their hands, (Y)because they had forsaken Yahweh, the God of their fathers. Thus they executed judgment on Joash.

25 (Z)When they had gone from him (for they left him very sick), his servants conspired against him because of the blood of the [p]son of Jehoiada the priest, and killed him on his bed. So he died, and they buried him in the city of David, but they did not bury him in the tombs of the kings. 26 Now these are those who conspired against him: Zabad the son of Shimeath the Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith the Moabitess. 27 Now as to his sons and the many [q]oracles against him and (AA)the [r]rebuilding of the house of God, behold, they are written in the [s](AB)treatise of the Book of the Kings. Then Amaziah his son became king in his place.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 24:4 Lit was with a heart
  2. 2 Chronicles 24:5 Lit to strengthen
  3. 2 Chronicles 24:5 Lit from year to year
  4. 2 Chronicles 24:7 Lit made
  5. 2 Chronicles 24:9 Lit gave a voice
  6. 2 Chronicles 24:10 Lit threw
  7. 2 Chronicles 24:10 Lit completed
  8. 2 Chronicles 24:12 Or craftsmen of wood, cf. 2 Sam 5:11; 2 Chr 24:12b
  9. 2 Chronicles 24:12 Lit strengthen
  10. 2 Chronicles 24:13 Lit caused to stand
  11. 2 Chronicles 24:13 Lit upon its proportion
  12. 2 Chronicles 24:16 Lit with
  13. 2 Chronicles 24:18 Wooden symbols of a female deity
  14. 2 Chronicles 24:21 Lit with stones
  15. 2 Chronicles 24:22 Or require; lit seek
  16. 2 Chronicles 24:25 As in some ancient versions; Heb sons
  17. 2 Chronicles 24:27 Or burdens upon
  18. 2 Chronicles 24:27 Lit founding
  19. 2 Chronicles 24:27 Heb midrash
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2 Chronicles 24
International Standard Version

Joash Follows Jehoiada’s Example(A)

24 Joash was seven years old when he began his reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah. She was from Beer-sheba. 2 Joash practiced what the Lord considered to be right during the lifetime[a] of Jehoiada the priest, 3 who found two wives for him, so he fathered sons and daughters.

4 Later on, Joash decided to rebuild the Lord’s Temple, 5 so he assembled the priests and descendants of Levi and ordered them, “Go throughout the cities of Judah and take up a collection[b] from all of Israel for the annual upkeep[c] of the Temple of your God. And make sure that you act quickly.” But the descendants of Levi did not act quickly, 6 so the king summoned Jehoiada the chief priest and asked him, “Why haven’t you required the descendants of Levi to bring from Judah and Jerusalem the tax levied by Moses, the Lord’s servant, and the assembly of Israel for the Tent of Testimony?”

7 Because that wicked woman Athaliah’s family members had broken into the Temple of God and used the consecrated implements of the Lord’s Temple for service to the Baals, 8 the king issued an order and a chest was made and set outside the entrance gate to the Lord’s Temple. 9 A public notice was sent throughout Judah and Jerusalem to bring in the tax that Moses the servant of the Lord had levied on Israel when they were in the wilderness. 10 So all the princes and all the people gladly brought their tax and placed it into the chest until they had completed paying the tax.[d] 11 Whenever the chest was brought to the king’s officials by the descendants of Levi, the royal secretary and the chief priest’s designated officer would come, empty the chest, and take it back to its place. They did this day after day until they had collected a large amount of cash.[e]

12 Both the king and Jehoiada paid the money to those who were working to maintain the service of the Lord’s Temple, and they, in turn, hired masons and carpenters to restore the Lord’s Temple. Iron and bronze workers also were brought in to repair the Lord’s Temple. 13 As a result, the workmen did their labor, and the repair work progressed steadily under their supervision,[f] and they restored God’s Temple back to what it should be, and strengthened it, too. 14 When they had completed the work, they brought what was left of the money to the king and to Jehoiada, and it was used to cast utensils for the Lord’s Temple that were to be utilized for daily service and for burnt offerings, for incense vessels, and for both gold and silver vessels. Burnt offerings were offered on a regular basis in the Lord’s Temple throughout Jehoiada’s lifetime.

Joash Apostatizes and Kills Jehoiada’s Son

15 Eventually, Jehoiada grew old and died at the age of 130 years, after having lived a full life. 16 He was buried in the City of David among the graves of[g] the kings, because he had accomplished many good things in Israel on behalf of God and his Temple. 17 But after Jehoiada had died, officials from Judah came, bowed down to the king, and the king listened to what they had to say. 18 They abandoned the Lord’s Temple and the God of their fathers, and they served Asherim[h] and idols. As a result this guilt of theirs resulted in wrath coming upon Judah and Jerusalem. 19 Nevertheless, God[i] sent prophets among them to bring them back to the Lord.

20 Then Jehoiada the priest’s son Zechariah was clothed by the Spirit of God, and he stood above the people and told them, “This is what God has to say: ‘Why are you breaking the Lord’s commandments. You’ll never be successful! Because you have abandoned the Lord, he has abandoned you.’”

21 But the people[j] conspired against him, and at the direct orders of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the Lord’s Temple. 22 This is how King Joash failed to remember the kindness that Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had shown him: he killed his son. As he lay dying, Zechariah cried out, “May the Lord watch this and avenge.”

The Death of Joash(B)

23 At the end of that year, the Aramean army attacked Joash. They invaded Judah and Jerusalem, destroyed every senior official among the people, and sent all of their possessions to the king of Damascus. 24 The Aramean army attacked with only a small force, but the Lord delivered a much larger army into their control because Judah[k] had abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors. And so the Aramean army carried out God’s[l] judgment on Joash. 25 After the Arameans left him very sick, Joash’s[m] own servants conspired against him because Joash[n] had murdered Jehoiada the priest’s son, and they killed him on his sick bed. 26 The conspirators included Shimeath the Ammonite’s son Zabad and Shimrith the Moabite’s son Jehozabad. 27 Records concerning his sons, the various prophetic statements rebuking him, and records of the reconstruction work on God’s Temple are written in the Midrash[o] of the Book of the Kings. Joash’s[p] son Amaziah reigned in his place.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 24:2 Lit. days
  2. 2 Chronicles 24:5 Lit. and collect silver
  3. 2 Chronicles 24:5 Lit. strengthening
  4. 2 Chronicles 24:10 The Heb. lacks paying the tax.
  5. 2 Chronicles 24:11 Lit. silver
  6. 2 Chronicles 24:13 Lit. progressed in their hands
  7. 2 Chronicles 24:16 The Heb. lacks the graves of
  8. 2 Chronicles 24:18 I.e. cultic pillars erected in worship to Canaanite deities
  9. 2 Chronicles 24:19 Lit. he
  10. 2 Chronicles 24:21 Lit. But they
  11. 2 Chronicles 24:24 Lit. they
  12. 2 Chronicles 24:24 The Heb. lacks of God’s
  13. 2 Chronicles 24:25 Lit. his
  14. 2 Chronicles 24:25 Lit. he
  15. 2 Chronicles 24:27 Or Commentary
  16. 2 Chronicles 24:27 Lit. His
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2 Chronicles 23
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