2 Chronicles 21-23

New King James Version

Jehoram Reigns in Judah^(A)

21 And ^(B)Jehoshaphat ^[a]rested with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the City of David. Then Jehoram his son reigned in his place. ² He had brothers, the sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azaryahu, Michael, and Shephatiah; all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of Israel. ³ Their father gave them great gifts of silver and gold and precious things, with fortified cities in Judah; but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram, because he was the firstborn.

⁴ Now when Jehoram ^[b]was established over the kingdom of his father, he strengthened himself and killed all his brothers with the sword, and also others of the princes of Israel.

^5 (C)Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. ⁶ And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done, for he had the daughter of ^(D)Ahab as a wife; and he did evil in the sight of the Lord. ⁷ Yet the Lord would not destroy the house of David, because of the ^(E)covenant that He had made with David, and since He had promised to give a lamp to him and to his ^(F)sons forever.

^8 (G)In his days Edom revolted against Judah’s authority, and made a king over themselves. ⁹ So Jehoram went out with his officers, and all his chariots with him. And he rose by night and attacked the Edomites who had surrounded him and the captains of the chariots. ¹⁰ Thus Edom has been in revolt against Judah’s authority to this day. At that time Libnah revolted against his rule, because he had forsaken the Lord God of his fathers. ¹¹ Moreover he made ^[c]high places in the mountains of Judah, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to ^(H)commit harlotry, and led Judah astray.

¹² And a letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying,

¹⁶ Moreover the ^(N)Lord ^(O)stirred up against Jehoram the spirit of the Philistines and the ^(P)Arabians who were near the Ethiopians. ¹⁷ And they came up into Judah and invaded it, and carried away all the possessions that were found in the king’s house, and also ^(Q)his sons and his wives, so that there was not a son left to him except ^[d]Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.

¹⁸ After all this the Lord struck him ^(R)in his intestines with an incurable disease. ¹⁹ Then it happened in the course of time, after the end of two years, that his intestines came out because of his sickness; so he died in severe pain. And his people made no ^[e]burning for him, like ^(S)the burning for his fathers.

²⁰ He was thirty-two years old when he became king. He reigned in Jerusalem eight years and, to no one’s sorrow, departed. However they buried him in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

Ahaziah Reigns in Judah^(T)

22 Then the inhabitants of Jerusalem made ^(U)Ahaziah his youngest son king in his place, for the raiders who came with the ^(V)Arabians into the camp had killed all the ^(W)older sons. So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram, king of Judah, reigned. ² Ahaziah was ^[f]forty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was ^(X)Athaliah the ^[g]granddaughter of Omri. ³ He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother advised him to do wickedly. ⁴ Therefore he did evil in the sight of the Lord, like the house of Ahab; for they were his counselors after the death of his father, to his destruction. ⁵ He also followed their advice, and went with ^[h]Jehoram the son of Ahab king of Israel to war against Hazael king of Syria at Ramoth Gilead; and the Syrians wounded Joram. ^6 (Y)Then he returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds which he had received at Ramah, when he fought against Hazael king of Syria. And ^[i]Azariah the son of Jehoram, king of Judah, went down to see Jehoram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.

⁷ His going to Joram ^(Z)was God’s occasion for Ahaziah’s ^[j]downfall; for when he arrived, ^(AA)he went out with ^[k]Jehoram against Jehu the son of Nimshi, ^(AB)whom the Lord had anointed to ^[l]cut off the house of Ahab. ⁸ And it happened, when Jehu was ^(AC)executing judgment on the house of Ahab, and ^(AD)found the princes of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah’s brothers who served Ahaziah, that he killed them. ^9 (AE)Then he searched for Ahaziah; and they caught him (he was hiding in Samaria), and brought him to Jehu. When they had killed him, they buried him, “because,” they said, “he is the son of ^(AF)Jehoshaphat, who ^(AG)sought the Lord with all his heart.”

So the house of Ahaziah had no one to assume power over the kingdom.

Athaliah Reigns in Judah^(AH)

^10 (AI)Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal heirs of the house of Judah. ¹¹ But ^[m]Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took ^(AJ)Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were being murdered, and put him and his nurse in a bedroom. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of King Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest (for she was the sister of Ahaziah), hid him from Athaliah so that she did not kill him. ¹² And he was hidden with them in the house of God for six years, while Athaliah reigned over the land.

Joash Crowned King of Judah^(AK)

23 In ^(AL)the seventh year ^(AM)Jehoiada strengthened himself, and made a covenant with the captains of hundreds: Azariah the son of Jeroham, Ishmael the son of Jehohanan, Azariah the son of ^(AN)Obed, Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri. ² And they went throughout Judah and gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah, and the ^(AO)chief fathers of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.

³ Then all the assembly made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And he said to them, “Behold, the king’s son shall reign, as the Lord has ^(AP)said of the sons of David. ⁴ This is what you shall do: One-third of you ^(AQ)entering on the Sabbath, of the priests and the Levites, shall be keeping watch over the doors; ⁵ one-third shall be at the king’s house; and one-third at the Gate of the Foundation. All the people shall be in the courts of the house of the Lord. ⁶ But let no one come into the house of the Lord except the priests and ^(AR)those of the Levites who serve. They may go in, for they are holy; but all the people shall keep the watch of the Lord. ⁷ And the Levites shall surround the king on all sides, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whoever comes into the house, let him be put to death. You are to be with the king when he comes in and when he goes out.”

⁸ So the Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded. And each man took his men who were to be on duty on the Sabbath, with those who were going off duty on the Sabbath; for Jehoiada the priest had not dismissed ^(AS)the divisions. ⁹ And Jehoiada the priest gave to the captains of hundreds the spears and the large and small ^(AT)shields which had belonged to King David, that were in the temple of God. ¹⁰ Then he set all the people, every man with his weapon in his hand, from the right side of the temple to the left side of the temple, along by the altar and by the temple, all around the king. ¹¹ And they brought out the king’s son, put the crown on him, ^(AU)gave him the ^[n]Testimony, and made him king. Then Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and said, “Long live the king!”

Death of Athaliah^(AV)

¹² Now when ^(AW)Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she came to the people in the temple of the Lord. ¹³ When she looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance; and the leaders and the trumpeters were by the king. All the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets, also the singers with musical instruments, and ^(AX)those who led in praise. So Athaliah tore her clothes and said, ^(AY)“Treason! Treason!”

¹⁴ And Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains of hundreds who were set over the army, and said to them, “Take her outside under guard, and slay with the sword whoever follows her.” For the priest had said, “Do not kill her in the house of the Lord.”

¹⁵ So they seized her; and she went by way of the entrance ^(AZ)of the Horse Gate into the king’s house, and they killed her there.

¹⁶ Then Jehoiada made a ^(BA)covenant between himself, the people, and the king, that they should be the Lord’s people. ¹⁷ And all the people went to the ^[o]temple of Baal, and tore it down. They broke in pieces its altars and images, and ^(BB)killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. ¹⁸ Also Jehoiada appointed the oversight of the house of the Lord to the hand of the priests, the Levites, whom David had ^(BC)assigned in the house of the Lord, to offer the burnt offerings of the Lord, as it is written in the ^(BD)Law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, as it was established by David. ¹⁹ And he set the ^(BE)gatekeepers at the gates of the house of the Lord, so that no one who was in any way unclean should enter.

^20 (BF)Then he took the captains of hundreds, the nobles, the governors of the people, and all the people of the land, and brought the king down from the house of the Lord; and they went through the Upper Gate to the king’s house, and set the king on the throne of the kingdom. ²¹ So all the people of the land rejoiced; and the city was quiet, for they had slain Athaliah with the sword.