⁴ But in the seventh year Jehoiada sent and took the commanders of the hundreds of the Carites and the runners, and he brought them to himself to the temple of Yahweh. Then he made^[a] a covenant with them and made them swear in the house of Yahweh and showed them the son of the king. ⁵ He commanded them, saying, “This is the thing which you must do: one third of you who go off duty on the Sabbath,^[b] the keepers of the guard in the house of the king, ⁶ and another third at the gate of Sur, and a third at the gate behind the runners, shall guard the post of the palace alternately. ⁷ Two of the units among you, all who go on duty on the Sabbath,^[c] guard the post of the temple of Yahweh for the king. ⁸ You must surround the king all about, each with his weapon in his hand; whoever comes to the ranks must be killed. Be with the king wherever he goes.”^[d]

⁹ So the commanders of hundreds did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded, and each took his men who went off duty on the Sabbath^[e] and those who came on duty on the Sabbath,^[f] and they came to Jehoiada the priest. ¹⁰ Then the priest gave to the commanders of the hundreds spears and small round shields which were King David’s, which were in the temple of Yahweh. ¹¹ So the royal runners stood, each with his weapons in his hand, from the side of the temple to the south up to the side of the temple on the north, around the altar and around the temple, about the king all around. ¹² Then he brought out the son of the king, put the crown on him with the testimony, and they made him king, anointed him, clapped their hands, and said, “Long live the king!”

¹³ When Athaliah heard the sound of the runners of the people, she came to the people at the temple of Yahweh. ¹⁴ She looked, and there was the king standing by the pillar according to the custom. The commanders and the trumpeters were by the king, and all of the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing on the trumpets. Athaliah tore her clothes and she called, “Treason, treason!” ¹⁵ Then Jehoiada the priest commanded the commanders of the hundreds, the appointed of the army, and he said to them, “Bring her out to the house of the ranks! The one coming after her should kill her with the sword,” for the priest had said, “Let her not be killed in the temple of Yahweh.” ¹⁶ So they grabbed her^[g] as she went by the entranceway of the horses to the palace of the king, and she was killed there.