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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
New Living Translation

Joash Repairs the Temple

24 Joash was seven years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty years. His mother was Zibiah from Beersheba. 2 Joash did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight throughout the lifetime of Jehoiada the priest. 3 Jehoiada chose two wives for Joash, and he had sons and daughters.

4 At one point Joash decided to repair and restore the Temple of the Lord. 5 He summoned the priests and Levites and gave them these instructions: “Go to all the towns of Judah and collect the required annual offerings, so that we can repair the Temple of your God. Do not delay!” But the Levites did not act immediately.

6 So the king called for Jehoiada the high priest and asked him, “Why haven’t you demanded that the Levites go out and collect the Temple taxes from the towns of Judah and from Jerusalem? Moses, the servant of the Lord, levied this tax on the community of Israel in order to maintain the Tabernacle of the Covenant.[a]”

7 Over the years the followers of wicked Athaliah had broken into the Temple of God, and they had used all the dedicated things from the Temple of the Lord to worship the images of Baal.

8 So now the king ordered a chest to be made and set outside the gate leading to the Temple of the Lord. 9 Then a proclamation was sent throughout Judah and Jerusalem, telling the people to bring to the Lord the tax that Moses, the servant of God, had required of the Israelites in the wilderness. 10 This pleased all the leaders and the people, and they gladly brought their money and filled the chest with it.

11 Whenever the chest became full, the Levites would carry it to the king’s officials. Then the court secretary and an officer of the high priest would come and empty the chest and take it back to the Temple again. This went on day after day, and a large amount of money was collected. 12 The king and Jehoiada gave the money to the construction supervisors, who hired masons and carpenters to restore the Temple of the Lord. They also hired metalworkers, who made articles of iron and bronze for the Lord’s Temple.

13 The men in charge of the renovation worked hard and made steady progress. They restored the Temple of God according to its original design and strengthened it. 14 When all the repairs were finished, they brought the remaining money to the king and Jehoiada. It was used to make various articles for the Temple of the Lord—articles for worship services and for burnt offerings, including ladles and other articles made of gold and silver. And the burnt offerings were sacrificed continually in the Temple of the Lord during the lifetime of Jehoiada the priest.

15 Jehoiada lived to a very old age, finally dying at 130. 16 He was buried among the kings in the City of David, because he had done so much good in Israel for God and his Temple.

Jehoiada’s Reforms Reversed

17 But after Jehoiada’s death, the leaders of Judah came and bowed before King Joash and persuaded him to listen to their advice. 18 They decided to abandon the Temple of the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and they worshiped Asherah poles and idols instead! Because of this sin, divine anger fell on Judah and Jerusalem. 19 Yet the Lord sent prophets to bring them back to him. The prophets warned them, but still the people would not listen.

20 Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, “This is what God says: Why do you disobey the Lord’s commands and keep yourselves from prospering? You have abandoned the Lord, and now he has abandoned you!”

21 Then the leaders plotted to kill Zechariah, and King Joash ordered that they stone him to death in the courtyard of the Lord’s Temple. 22 That was how King Joash repaid Jehoiada for his loyalty—by killing his son. Zechariah’s last words as he died were, “May the Lord see what they are doing and avenge my death!”

The End of Joash’s Reign

23 In the spring of the year[b] the Aramean army marched against Joash. They invaded Judah and Jerusalem and killed all the leaders of the nation. Then they sent all the plunder back to their king in Damascus. 24 Although the Arameans attacked with only a small army, the Lord helped them conquer the much larger army of Judah. The people of Judah had abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, so judgment was carried out against Joash.

25 The Arameans withdrew, leaving Joash severely wounded. But his own officials plotted to kill him for murdering the son[c] of Jehoiada the priest. They assassinated him as he lay in bed. Then he was buried in the City of David, but not in the royal cemetery. 26 The assassins were Jozacar,[d] the son of an Ammonite woman named Shimeath, and Jehozabad, the son of a Moabite woman named Shomer.[e]

27 The account of the sons of Joash, the prophecies about him, and the record of his restoration of the Temple of God are written in The Commentary on the Book of the Kings. His son Amaziah became the next king.

Footnotes

  1. 24:6 Hebrew Tent of the Testimony.
  2. 24:23 Hebrew At the turn of the year. The first day of the year in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred in March or April.
  3. 24:25 As in Greek version and Latin Vulgate; Hebrew reads sons.
  4. 24:26a As in parallel text at 2 Kgs 12:21; Hebrew reads Zabad.
  5. 24:26b As in parallel text at 2 Kgs 12:21; Hebrew reads Shimrith, a variant spelling of Shomer.
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