2 Chronicles 21-24

New American Standard Bible

Jehoram Succeeds Jehoshaphat in Judah

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

⁴ Now when Jehoram had ^[c]taken over the kingdom of his father and gathered courage, he ^(D)killed all his brothers with the sword, and some of the leaders of Israel as well. ^5 (E)Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned for eight years in Jerusalem. ^6 (F)He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done, ^(G)for Ahab’s daughter was his wife; and he did evil in the sight of the Lord. ⁷ Yet the Lord was not willing to destroy the house of David because of the covenant which He had made with David, ^(H)and because He had promised to give a lamp to him and his sons forever.

Revolt against Judah

⁸ In his days ^(I)Edom broke away ^[d]from the rule of Judah, and appointed a king over themselves. ⁹ Then Jehoram crossed over with his commanders and all his chariots with him. And he got up at night and struck and killed the Edomites who were surrounding him, and the commanders of the chariots. ¹⁰ So Edom revolted ^[e]against Judah to this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time ^[f]against his rule because he had abandoned the Lord God of his fathers. ¹¹ Furthermore, ^(J)he made high places in the mountains of Judah, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem ^(K)to be unfaithful, and led Judah astray.

¹² Then a letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying, “This is what the Lord, the God of your father David says: ‘Because ^(L)you have not walked in the ways of your father Jehoshaphat ^(M)and the ways of Asa king of Judah, ¹³ but ^(N)have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and have caused Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to be unfaithful ^(O)as the house of Ahab was unfaithful, and you ^(P)have also killed your brothers, ^[g]your own family, who were better than you, ¹⁴ behold, the Lord is going to strike your people, your sons, your wives, and all your possessions with a great plague; ¹⁵ and ^(Q)you will suffer ^[h]severe sickness, a disease of your bowels, until your bowels come out because of the sickness, day by day.’”

¹⁶ Then ^(R)the Lord stirred up against Jehoram the spirit of the Philistines and ^(S)the Arabs who ^[i]bordered the Ethiopians; ¹⁷ and they came against Judah and invaded it, and carried away all the possessions found in the king’s house together with his sons and his wives, so that no son was left to him except ^[j](T)Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.

¹⁸ So after all this the Lord struck him ^(U)in his intestines with an incurable sickness. ¹⁹ Now it came about in the course of time, at the end of two years, that his bowels came out because of his sickness, and he died in great pain. And his people did not make a funeral fire for him like ^(V)the fire for his fathers. ²⁰ He was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for eight years; and he departed ^[k](W)with no one’s regret, and they buried him in the city of David, ^(X)but not in the tombs of the kings.

Ahaziah Succeeds Jehoram in Judah

22 ^(Y)Then the inhabitants of Jerusalem made ^[l]Ahaziah, his youngest son, king in his place, for the band of men who came with ^(Z)the Arabs to the camp had killed all the older sons. So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah began to reign. ² Ahaziah was ^[m]twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned for one year in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Athaliah, the ^[n]granddaughter of Omri. ³ He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor to act wickedly. ⁴ So 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 ^(AA)his own destruction.

Ahaziah Allies with Jehoram of Israel

⁵ He also walked by their counsel, and went with Jehoram the son of Ahab king of Israel to wage war against Hazael king of Aram at Ramoth-gilead. But the ^(AB)Arameans ^[o]wounded ^[p]Joram. ⁶ So he returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds ^[q]which they had inflicted on him at Ramah, when he fought against Hazael king of Aram. And ^[r]Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram king of Judah, went down to see Jehoram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.

⁷ Now ^(AC)the destruction of Ahaziah was from God, in that ^[s]he went to Joram. For when he arrived, ^(AD)he went out with Jehoram against Jehu the son of Nimshi, ^(AE)whom the Lord had anointed to eliminate the house of Ahab.

Jehu Murders Princes of Judah

^8 (AF)And it came about, when Jehu was executing judgment on the house of Ahab, that he found the princes of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah’s brothers attending to Ahaziah, and killed them. ^9 (AG)He also searched for Ahaziah, and they caught him while he was hiding in Samaria; they brought him to Jehu, put him to death, ^(AH)and buried him. For they said, “He is the son of Jehoshaphat, ^(AI)who sought the Lord with all his heart.” So there was no one of the house of Ahaziah to retain the power of the kingdom.

^10 (AJ)Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she rose and eliminated all the royal ^[t]children of the house of Judah. ¹¹ But Jehoshabeath the king’s daughter took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons who were being put to death, and placed him and his nurse in the 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 would not put him to death. ¹² He kept himself hidden with them in the house of God for six years while Athaliah reigned over the land.

Jehoiada Sets Joash on the Throne of Judah

23 ^(AK)Now in the seventh year, Jehoiada gathered his courage, and took captains of hundreds: Azariah the son of Jeroham, Ishmael the son of Johanan, Azariah the son of Obed, Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri, and they entered into a covenant with him. ² And they went throughout Judah and gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah, and the heads of the fathers’ households of ^(AL)Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. ³ Then all the assembly made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And ^[u]Jehoiada said to them, “Behold, the king’s son shall reign, ^(AM)as the Lord has spoken concerning the sons of David. ⁴ This is the thing which you shall do: a third of you, of the priests and Levites ^(AN)who come in on the Sabbath, shall be gatekeepers, ⁵ and a third shall be at the king’s house, and a third at the Gate of the Foundation; and all the people shall be in the courtyards of the house of the Lord. ⁶ But no one is to enter the house of the Lord except the priests and ^(AO)the ministering Levites; they may enter, for they are holy. And all the people are to keep the command of the Lord. ⁷ The Levites will surround the king, each man with his weapons in his hand; and whoever enters the house is to be put to death. Therefore be with the king when he comes in and when he goes out.”

⁸ The Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded. And each one of them took his men who were to come in on the Sabbath, with those who were to go out on the Sabbath, for Jehoiada the priest did not dismiss any of ^(AP)the divisions. ⁹ Then Jehoiada the priest gave the captains of hundreds the spears and the shields and quivers which had been King David’s, which were in the house of God. ¹⁰ He stationed all the people, each man with his weapon in his hand, from the right ^[v]side of the house to the left ^[w]side of the house, by the altar and by the house, around the king. ¹¹ Then they brought out the king’s son and put the crown on him, and gave him ^(AQ)the testimony and made him king. And Jehoiada and his sons anointed him and said, “^(AR)Long live the king!”

Athaliah Murdered

¹² When Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she went into the house of the Lord to the people. ¹³ She looked, and behold, the king was standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the ^[x]trumpeters were beside the king. And all the people of the land rejoiced and blew trumpets, the singers with their musical instruments ^[y]leading the praise. Then Athaliah tore her clothes and said, “Conspiracy! Conspiracy!” ¹⁴ And Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains of hundreds who were appointed over the army, and said to them, “Bring her out ^[z]between the ranks, and whoever follows her is to be put to death with the sword.” For the priest said, “You shall not put her to death in the house of the Lord.” ¹⁵ So they ^[aa]seized her, and when she arrived at the entrance of ^(AS)the Horse Gate of the king’s house, they ^(AT)put her to death there.

Reforms Carried Out

¹⁶ Then ^(AU)Jehoiada made a covenant between himself and all the people and the king, that they would be the Lord’s people. ¹⁷ And all the people went to the house of Baal and tore it down, and they broke in pieces his altars and his images, and ^(AV)killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. ¹⁸ Moreover, Jehoiada placed the offices of the house of the Lord under the ^[ab]authority of ^(AW)the Levitical priests, ^(AX)whom David had assigned over the house of the Lord, to offer the burnt offerings of the Lord, as it is written in the Law of Moses—^(AY)with rejoicing and singing according to the ^[ac]order of David. ¹⁹ He stationed ^(AZ)the gatekeepers of the house of the Lord, so that no one would enter who was in any way unclean. ^20 (BA)He took the captains of hundreds, the nobles, the rulers of the people, and all the people of the land, and brought the king down from the house of the Lord, and went through the upper gate to the king’s house. And they seated the king upon the royal throne. ²¹ So ^(BB)all of the people of the land rejoiced and the city was at rest. For they had put Athaliah to death with the sword.

Young Joash Influenced by Jehoiada

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

Faithless Priests

⁴ Now it came about after this that Joash ^[ad]decided ^(BE)to restore the house of the Lord. ⁵ He gathered the priests and Levites and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah and collect money from all ^(BF)Israel to ^[ae]repair the house of your God annually, and you shall ^[af]do the work quickly.” But the Levites did not act quickly. ⁶ So the king summoned Jehoiada, the chief priest, and said to him, “Why have you not required the Levites to bring in from Judah and from Jerusalem ^(BG)the ^[ag]contribution of Moses, the servant of the Lord, and the congregation of Israel, ^(BH)for the tent of the testimony?” ⁷ For ^(BI)the sons of the wicked Athaliah had broken into the house of God, and even ^[ah]used the holy things of the house of the Lord for the Baals.

Temple Repaired

⁸ So the king commanded, and ^(BJ)they made a chest and set it outside by the gate of the house of the Lord. ^9 (BK)And they made a proclamation in Judah and Jerusalem to bring to the Lord ^(BL)the ^[ai]contribution commanded by Moses the servant of God on Israel in the wilderness. ¹⁰ All the officers and all the people rejoiced, and they brought in their contribution and ^[aj]dropped it into the chest until they had finished. ¹¹ It happened that whenever the chest was brought to the king’s officer by the Levites, and ^(BM)they saw that the money was substantial, the king’s scribe and the chief priest’s officer would come and empty the chest, and pick it up and return it to its place. They did this daily and collected a large amount of money. ¹² The king and Jehoiada gave it to those who did the work of the service of the house of the Lord; and they hired masons and carpenters to restore the house of the Lord, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the house of the Lord. ¹³ So the workmen labored, and the repair work progressed in their hands, and they ^[ak]restored the house of God according to its ^[al]specifications and strengthened it. ¹⁴ When they had finished, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada; and it was made into utensils for the house of the Lord, utensils for the service and the burnt offerings, and pans and utensils of gold and silver. And they offered burnt offerings in the house of the Lord continually, all the days of Jehoiada.

¹⁵ Now Jehoiada ^[am]reached a good old age and he died; he was 130 years old at his death. ¹⁶ And they buried him ^(BN)in the city of David with the kings, because he had done well in ^(BO)Israel and ^[an]for 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 abandoned ^(BP)the house of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and ^(BQ)served the ^[ao]Asherim and the idols; so ^(BR)wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs. ¹⁹ Yet ^(BS)He sent prophets to them to bring them back to the Lord; and they testified against them, but they would not listen.

Joash Murders Son of Jehoiada

^20 (BT)Then the Spirit of God ^[ap]covered Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the priest like clothing; and he stood above the people and said to them, “This is what God has said, ‘^(BU)Why do you break the commandments of the Lord and do not prosper? ^(BV)Because you have abandoned the Lord, He has also abandoned you.’” ²¹ So ^(BW)they conspired against him, and at the command of the king they stoned him ^[aq]to death in the courtyard of the house of the Lord. ²² So Joash the king did not remember the kindness which Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had shown him, but he murdered his son. And as Zechariah died he said, “May ^(BX)the Lord see and ^[ar]avenge!”

Aram Invades and Defeats Judah

²³ Now it happened at the turn of the year that ^(BY)the army of the Arameans came up against Joash; and they came to Judah and Jerusalem, destroyed all the officials of the people from among the people, and sent all their spoils to the king of Damascus. ²⁴ Indeed, the army of the Arameans came with a small number of men; yet ^(BZ)the Lord handed a very great army over to them, ^(CA)because ^[as]Judah and Joash had abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers. So they executed judgment on Joash.

^25 (CB)When they left him (for they left him very sick), his own servants conspired against him because of the blood of the ^[at]son of Jehoiada the priest, and they murdered 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 the men who conspired against him: Zabad the son of Shimeath the Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith the Moabitess. ²⁷ As to his sons and the many pronouncements against him and ^(CC)the ^[au]rebuilding of the house of God, behold, they are written in the ^[av](CD)treatise of the Book of the Kings. Then his son Amaziah became king in his place.