Beginning

21 Y’hoshafat slept with his ancestors and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David, and Y’horam his son became king in his place. ² He had brothers who were sons of Y’hoshafat — ‘Azaryah, Yechi’el, Z’kharyahu, ‘Azaryahu, Mikha’el and Sh’fatyahu; all these were sons of Y’hoshafat king of Isra’el. ³ Their father had given them lavish gifts of silver, gold and other items of value, as well as fortified cities in Y’hudah; but he had given the kingdom to Y’horam, because he was the firstborn. ⁴ But when Y’horam had taken control of his father’s kingdom and consolidated his rule, he put to the sword all his brothers and a number of the leading men in Isra’el.

⁵ He was thirty-two years old when he began his reign, and he ruled eight years in Yerushalayim. ⁶ He lived after the example of the kings of Isra’el, as did the house of Ach’av; because he had married Ach’av’s daughter; he did what was evil from Adonai’s perspective. ⁷ However, Adonai was unwilling to destroy the house of David, because of the covenant he had made with David; inasmuch as he had promised to give him and his children a lamp that would burn forever.

⁸ During his time Edom revolted against Y’hudah and set up its own king. ⁹ Then Y’horam crossed with his commanders and all his chariots. Under cover of night, he and his chariot commanders attacked and defeated Edom, who had surrounded him. ¹⁰ Nevertheless, since that day Edom has remained free of Y’hudah’s domination. Livnah revolted against him at the same time, because he had abandoned Adonai the God of his ancestors. ¹¹ Moreover, he built high places in the hills of Y’hudah, caused the people living in Yerushalayim to prostitute themselves and drew Y’hudah away.

¹² A letter came to him from Eliyahu the prophet which said, “Here is what Adonai, the God of David your ancestor, says: ‘You have not lived by the examples of Y’hoshafat your father or Asa king of Y’hudah. ¹³ Instead you have lived by the example of the kings of Isra’el and have caused Y’hudah and the people living in Yerushalayim to prostitute themselves, just as the house of Ach’av caused [Isra’el] to prostitute themselves. Moreover, you killed your brothers from your father’s house, men better than you. ¹⁴ Because of all this, Adonai is going to strike your people with a terrible disease, also your children, your wives and everything you have. ¹⁵ You will be very ill from a disease in your intestines, until your intestines protrude, because of the effects of this disease, day after day.’”

¹⁶ Then Adonai aroused against Y’horam the spirit of the P’lishtim and of the Arabs near the Ethiopians; ¹⁷ and they came up to attack Y’hudah. They broke in and carried off all the personal property they could find in the royal palace, as well as his children and his wives; so that no son was left to him except Y’ho’achaz his youngest son.

¹⁸ After all this, Adonai struck him in his intestines with an incurable disease. ¹⁹ In time, after two years, his intestines protruded because of his disease, and he suffered a most painful death. His people kindled no fire for him, as had been done for his ancestors. ²⁰ He was thirty-two years old when he began his reign, he ruled in Yerushalayim for eight years, and he left without joy. They buried him in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

22 The people living in Yerushalayim made Achazyah his youngest son king in place of him, since the raiding party that had invaded the camp with the Arabs had killed all the older ones. So Achazyah the son of Y’horam king of Y’hudah reigned. ² Achazyah was forty-two years old when he began his reign, and he ruled for one year in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was ‘Atalyahu the daughter of ‘Omri. ³ He too lived after the example of the house of Ach’av, because his mother was his counselor in acting wickedly. ⁴ So he did what was evil from Adonai’s perspective, as had the house of Ach’av; because, to his destruction, they were his counselors after his father died; ⁵ and he lived his life by their advice.

With Y’horam the son of Ach’av, king of Isra’el, he went to war against Haza’el king of Aram at Ramot-Gil‘ad, where the Aramim wounded Yoram. ⁶ He returned to Yizre‘el to be healed of the wounds which they had inflicted on him at Ramah while fighting Haza’el king of Aram. Achazyah the son of Y’horam, king of Y’hudah, went down to visit Y’horam the son of Ach’av in Yizre‘el, because he was not feeling well.

⁷ Through Achazyah’s visit to Yoram, God brought about his downfall. After he arrived, he accompanied Yoram against Yehu the son of Nimshi, whom Adonai had anointed to cut off the house of Ach’av. ⁸ But it happened that when Yehu was executing judgment on the house of Ach’av, he found the leading men of Y’hudah and Achazyah’s nephews in attendance on Achazyah and killed them. ⁹ Then he went searching for Achazyah; they caught him where he had been hiding in Shomron, brought him to Yehu and killed him. But [his subjects] buried him, because they said, “He was the [grand]son of Y’hoshafat, who sought Adonai with all his heart.”

At this point there was no one in the house of Achazyah strong enough to rule the kingdom. ¹⁰ When ‘Atalyah the mother of Achazyah saw that her son was dead, she set about destroying the entire royal family of the house of Y’hudah. ¹¹ But Y’hoshav‘at the daughter of the king took Yo’ash the son of Achazyah, stole him away from among the princes who were being slaughtered, and sequestered him and his nurse in a bedroom. Thus Y’hoshav‘at the daughter of King Y’horam, wife of Y’hoyada the cohen and sister of Achazyah, hid him from ‘Atalyah, so that he was not killed. ¹² He remained hidden with them in the house of God for six years; during this time ‘Atalyah ruled the land.

23 In the seventh year Y’hoyada took courage and formed a conspiracy with certain captains of hundred-man platoons — ‘Azaryah the son of Yerocham, Yishma‘el the son of Y’hochanan, ‘Azaryah the son of ‘Oved, Ma‘aseiyahu the son of ‘Adayahu and Elishafat the son of Zikhri. ² They canvassed Y’hudah and gathered the L’vi’im from all the cities of Y’hudah, together with the clan heads of Isra’el, and came to Yerushalayim. ³ The whole assembly made an agreement with the king in the house of God. [Y’hoyada] addressed them: “Here! The king’s son will reign, as Adonai said in regard to the descendants of David! ⁴ Here is what you are to do: of you cohanim and L’vi’im who come on duty on Shabbat, a third are to guard the gates, ⁵ a third the royal palace and a third the Gate of the Foundation; while all the people are to remain in the courtyards of the house of Adonai. ⁶ No one is to enter the house of Adonai except the cohanim and those L’vi’im who are actually performing the service. These may enter, because they are holy; but all the people are to observe Adonai’s order. ⁷ The L’vi’im are to surround the king, each man with his weapons in his hand. Anyone who enters the house is to be killed. Stay with the king whenever he enters or leaves.”

⁸ The L’vi’im and all Y’hudah did exactly as Y’hoyada the cohen ordered. Each took his men, those coming on duty on Shabbat and those going off duty on Shabbat (for Y’hoyada the cohen did not dismiss the divisions). ⁹ Y’hoyada the cohen issued to the captains of hundreds the spears and the large and small shields that had been King David’s and were kept in the house of God. ¹⁰ He then positioned all the people, each man with his weapon in his hand, from the right side of the house to the left side of the house, alongside the altar, alongside [the exterior of] the house and around the king. ¹¹ Then they brought out the king’s son, crowned him, gave him [a copy of] the testimony and thus made him king. Y’hoyada and his sons anointed him, and they shouted, “Long live the king!”

¹² When ‘Atalyah heard the sound of the people running and praising the king, she entered the house of Adonai where the people were, ¹³ looked and saw the king standing there on his platform at the entrance, with the leaders and trumpeters next to the king. All the people of the land were celebrating and blowing the trumpets; while the singers with their musical instruments were leading songs of praise. At this, ‘Atalyah tore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!” ¹⁴ Y’hoyada the cohen brought out the captains of hundreds who were in charge of the army and said to them, “Escort her out past the ranks [of guards]; but anyone who follows her, let him be put to the sword.” For the cohen had said, “Do not put her to death in the house of Adonai.” ¹⁵ So they took her by force and led her by the horses’ entry to the king’s palace, and there they put her to death.

¹⁶ Y’hoyada made a covenant between himself, all the people and the king, that they would be Adonai’s people. ¹⁷ Then all the people went to the house of Ba‘al and broke it down; they smashed his altars and images and killed Mattan the priest of Ba‘al in front of the altars.

¹⁸ Y’hoyada appointed officers for the house of Adonai under the supervision of the cohanim and L’vi’im, whom David had assigned turns of duty in the house of Adonai, to offer the burnt offerings of Adonai, as written in the Torah of Moshe, with rejoicing and singing in keeping with David’s orders. ¹⁹ He stationed guards at the gates of the house of Adonai, so that no one who was unclean in any respect could enter. ²⁰ He took the captains of hundreds, the men of rank, the rulers of the people and all the people of the land; and they brought the king down from the house of Adonai, going through the Upper Gate to the royal palace, and seated the king on the royal throne. ²¹ All the people of the land celebrated, and at last the city was quiet. That is how they killed ‘Atalyah with the sword.

24 Yo’ash was seven years old when he began his reign, and he reigned forty years in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was Tzivyah, from Be’er-Sheva. ² Yo’ash did what was right from Adonai’s perspective throughout the lifetime of Y’hoyada the cohen. ³ Y’hoyada chose two wives for him, and he became the father of sons and daughters.

⁴ Some time later, Yo’ash decided to restore the house of Adonai. ⁵ He gathered the cohanim and L’vi’im and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Y’hudah, and collect money each year from all Isra’el to repair the house of your God. See that you do this promptly.” But when the L’vi’im procrastinated, ⁶ the king summoned Y’hoyada the chief and said to him, “Why haven’t you demanded that the L’vi’im bring in from Y’hudah and Yerushalayim the tax prescribed by Moshe the servant of Adonai and by the community of Isra’el, for the tent of the testimony?” ⁷ For the sons of that wicked ‘Atalyahu had broken up the house of God, and they had given all the consecrated things belonging to the house of Adonai to the ba‘alim.

⁸ Then, at the king’s order, they made a box and placed it outside the entrance to the house of Adonai. ⁹ They proclaimed throughout Y’hudah and Yerushalayim that the tax Moshe the servant of God had imposed on Isra’el in the desert should be brought in for Adonai. ¹⁰ All the leaders and all the people were glad to bring in their contributions and put them in the box, until it was full. ¹¹ When the box was brought to the king’s officials by the L’vi’im, and when they saw how much money there was, the king’s secretary and the chief cohen’s official came and emptied the box; then they took it and returned it to its place. They did this daily, and they collected money in abundance.

¹² The king and Y’hoyada gave it to those in charge of taking care of the house of Adonai. They, in turn, hired stone-workers and carpenters to restore the house of Adonai, also iron- and bronze-workers to repair the house of Adonai. ¹³ The workers got on with their tasks, so that the restoration progressed well, until they had returned the house of God to its earlier condition and strengthened it. ¹⁴ When they had finished, they brought the rest of the money to the king and Y’hoyada, and it was used to make equipment for the house of Adonai — articles for ministry, buckets, fire pans, and utensils of gold and silver. So they offered burnt offerings in the house of Adonai regularly throughout the time of Y’hoyada.

¹⁵ But Y’hoyada grew old; and when he was full of days, he died. He was 130 years old when he died. ¹⁶ They buried him in the City of David among the kings, because he had served Isra’el, God and his house well.

¹⁷ After Y’hoyada died, the leaders of Y’hudah came and prostrated themselves before the king. Then the king listened to them; ¹⁸ and they abandoned the house of Adonai the God of their ancestors and served the sacred poles and the idols. In consequence of their guilt, [God’s] anger fell on Y’hudah and Yerushalayim. ¹⁹ In spite of this, he sent them prophets to bring them back to Adonai; they warned them, but they wouldn’t pay attention. ²⁰ The Spirit of God covered Z’kharyah the son of Y’hoyada the cohen; he stood above the people and addressed them: “Thus says God: ‘Why are you transgressing the mitzvot of Adonai and courting disaster? Because you have abandoned Adonai, he has abandoned you.” ²¹ But they conspired against him and stoned him to death at the order of the king in the courtyard of the house of Adonai. ²² Thus Yo’ash the king did not remember the kindness which Y’hoyada, [Z’kharyah’s] father, had done for him, but put his son to death. As he was dying he said, “May Adonai see this and take vengeance!”

²³ The following spring, the army of Aram came up against him. They attacked Y’hudah and Yerushalayim, slaughtered all the people’s leaders and sent all their spoil to the king of Dammesek. ²⁴ Although the army of Aram attacked with only a small company of men, Adonai handed over a very great army to them, because they had abandoned Adonai the God of their ancestors. Thus they executed judgment against Yo’ash.

²⁵ After they had left him — and they left him seriously wounded — his own servants conspired against him because he had shed the blood of the sons of Y’hoyada the cohen; and they killed him in his own bed. After he died, they buried him in the City of David, but they didn’t bury him in the tombs of the kings. ²⁶ Those who conspired against him were Zavad the son of Shim‘at the ‘Amonit and Y’hozavad the son of Shimrit the Mo’avit.

²⁷ As for his sons, the heavy tribute imposed on him, and the rebuilding of the house of God, they are recorded in the commentary of the Annals of the Kings. Then Amatzyahu his son took his place as king.