The Daily Audio Bible

³² It was during that period that Adonai began to dismember Isra’el. Haza’el attacked them throughout the territory of Isra’el ³³ east of the Yarden — all the land of Gil‘ad, the Gadi, Re’uveni and M’nashi, from ‘Aro‘er by the Arnon River, including Gil‘ad and Bashan.

³⁴ Other activities of Yehu, all his accomplishments and all his power are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el. ³⁵ Yehu slept with his ancestors, and they buried him in Shomron. Then Y’ho’achaz his son became king in his place. ³⁶ Yehu ruled over Isra’el in Shomron for twenty-eight years.

11 When ‘Atalyah the mother of Achazyah saw that her son was dead, she set about destroying the entire royal family. ² But Y’hosheva the daughter of King Yoram, sister of Achazyah, took Yo’ash the son of Achazyah and stole him away from among the princes who were being slaughtered. She took him and his nurse, sequestered them in a bedroom, and hid them from ‘Atalyah, so that he was not killed. ³ He remained hidden with his nurse in the house of Adonai for six years; during this time ‘Atalyah ruled the land. ⁴ In the seventh year Y’hoyada summoned the captains of hundred-man platoons, of both the Kari and the guard. He brought them into the house of Adonai, made an agreement with them and had them swear to it in the house of Adonai. Then he showed them the king’s son ⁵ and gave them this instruction: “Here is what you are to do: of you who come on duty on Shabbat, a third [normally] guards the royal palace, ⁶ a third is at the Sur Gate and a third is at the gate behind the guards. [The first third] is to continue guarding the palace and serve as a barrier, ⁷ while the other two groups of you who come on duty on Shabbat will guard the house of Adonai, where the king is. ⁸ You are to surround the king, each man with his weapons in his hand. Anyone who penetrates the ranks is to be killed. Stay with the king whenever he leaves or enters.”

⁹ The captains over hundreds 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, and came to Y’hoyada the cohen. ¹⁰ The cohen issued to the captains of hundreds the spears and shields that had been King David’s and were kept in the house of Adonai. ¹¹ The guards then took positions, each man with his weapons 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. ¹² Then he brought out the king’s son, crowned him, gave him [a copy of] the testimony and thus made him king; they anointed him, clapped their hands and shouted, “Long live the king!”

¹³ When ‘Atalyah heard the shouting of the guard and the people, she entered the house of Adonai where the people were, ¹⁴ looked and saw the king standing there on the platform, in keeping with the rule, with the leaders and trumpeters next to the king. All the people of the land were celebrating and blowing the trumpets. At this ‘Atalyah tore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!” ¹⁵ Y’hoyada the cohen ordered the captains of hundreds, the army officers, “Escort her out past the ranks [of guards]; but anyone who follows her, kill with the sword.” For the cohen had said, “She must not be put to death in the house of Adonai.” ¹⁶ So they took her by force and led her through the horses’ entry to the royal palace, and there she was put to death.

¹⁷ Y’hoyada made a covenant between Adonai, the king and the people, that they would be Adonai’s people, and [a covenant] between the king and the people. ¹⁸ Then all the people of the land went to the house of Ba‘al and broke it down; they completely smashed its altars and images and killed Mattan the priest of Ba‘al in front of the altars.

Next, the cohen appointed officers over the house of Adonai. ¹⁹ He took the captains of hundreds, the Kari, the guards and all the people of the land; and they brought the king down from the house of Adonai, going by way of the gate of the guards to the royal palace. There he sat on the throne of the kings. ²⁰ All the people of the land celebrated, and at last the city was quiet. That is how they killed ‘Atalyah with the sword at the royal palace.

12 ^(11:21) Y’ho’ash was seven years old when he began his reign. ^2 (1) It was in the seventh year of Yehu that Y’ho’ash began to rule, and he ruled forty years in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was Tzivyah, from Be’er-Sheva. ^3 (2) Y’ho’ash did what was right from Adonai’s perspective throughout the lifetime of Y’hoyada the cohen, who instructed him. ^4 (3) Nevertheless the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and presented offerings on the high places.

^5 (4) Y’ho’ash said to the cohanim, “All the funds for sacred purposes which are brought to the house of Adonai — the half-shekel tax, the taxes on persons in a man’s household, and all the offerings anyone voluntarily brings to the house of Adonai — ^6 (5) the cohanim are to receive from whoever personally makes contributions to them; and they are to use these funds to repair the damaged parts of the house, wherever damage is found. ^7 (6) But twenty-three years into the reign of King Y’ho’ash, the cohanim had still not repaired the damaged places in the house. ^8 (7) So King Y’ho’ash summoned Y’hoyada the cohen and the other cohanim and said to them, “Why aren’t you repairing the damaged places in the house? Therefore, you are no longer to take money from those who contribute it personally to you; you must hand it over to be used for repairing the damage in the house.” ^9 (8) The cohanim agreed not to receive money from the people, and they would no longer be responsible for repairing the damage to the house.

^10 (9) Then Y’hoyada the cohen took a chest, drilled a hole in its lid and set it by the altar, on the right, as one enters the house of Adonai; and the cohanim in charge of the entry put in it all the money brought into the house of Adonai. ^11 (10) When they saw that there was a large amount of money in the chest, the king’s secretary and the cohen hagadol would come up, count the money found in the house of Adonai and put it in bags. ^12 (11) Then they would give the weighed-out money to those supervising the work in the house of Adonai, who would use it to pay the carpenters and construction-workers doing the work in the house of Adonai, ^13 (12) on masons, stone-workers, timber, worked stone and everything else needed for repairing the damaged places in the house of Adonai. ^14 (13) But none of the money brought into the house of Adonai was used to make silver cups, snuffers, bowls, trumpets or other articles of gold or silver for the house of Adonai; ^15 (14) because they gave the money to those doing the work, thus restricting its use to repairing the damage in the house of Adonai. ^16 (15) Moreover, they did not require an accounting from the supervisors given the money to pay the workers, because they dealt honestly. ^17 (16) Money from guilt offerings and sin offerings, however, was not brought into the house of Adonai; it went to the cohanim.

^18 (17) Haza’el king of Aram went up and fought against Gat; and after capturing it, Haza’el made his decision to attack Yerushalayim. ^19 (18) Y’ho’ash king of Y’hudah took all the consecrated articles that Y’hoshafat, Y’horam and Achazyah, his ancestors, kings of Y’hudah, had dedicated, as well as his own consecrated articles and all the gold found in the treasuries of the house of Adonai and of the royal palace, and sent them to Haza’el king of Aram, who then withdrew from Yerushalayim.

^20 (19) Other activities of Yo’ash and all his accomplishments are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y’hudah.

^21 (20) Then his servants got together, formed a conspiracy and murdered Yo’ash at Beit-Millo on the way down to Sila.

18 After this, Sha’ul left Athens and went to Corinth, ² where he met a Jewish man named Aquila, originally from Pontus but having recently come with his wife Priscilla from Italy, because Claudius had issued a decree expelling all the Jews from Rome. Sha’ul went to see them; ³ and because he had the same trade as they, making tents, he stayed on with them; and they worked together.

⁴ Sha’ul also began carrying on discussions every Shabbat in the synagogue, where he tried to convince both Jews and Greeks. ⁵ But after Sila and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Sha’ul felt pressed by the urgency of the message and testified in depth to the Jews that Yeshua is the Messiah. ⁶ However when they set themselves against him and began hurling insults, he shook out his clothes and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! For my part, I am clean; from now on, I will go to the Goyim!”

⁷ So he left them and went into the home of a “God-fearer” named Titius Justus, whose house was right next door to the synagogue. ⁸ Crispus, the president of the synagogue, came to trust in the Lord, along with his whole household; also many of the Corinthians who heard trusted and were immersed.

⁹ One night, in a vision, the Lord said to Sha’ul, “Don’t be afraid, but speak right up, and don’t stop, ¹⁰ because I am with you. No one will succeed in harming you, for I have many people in this city.” ¹¹ So Sha’ul stayed there for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God.

¹² But when Gallio became the Roman governor of Achaia, the unbelieving Jews made a concerted attack on Sha’ul and took him to court, ¹³ saying, “This man is trying to persuade people to worship God in ways that violate the Torah.” ¹⁴ Sha’ul was just about to open his mouth, when Gallio said to the Jews, “Listen, you Jews, if this were a case of inflicted injury or a serious crime, I could reasonably be expected to hear you out patiently. ¹⁵ But since it involves questions about words and names and your own law, then you must deal with it yourselves. I flatly refuse to judge such matters.” ¹⁶ And he had them ejected from the court. ¹⁷ They all grabbed Sosthenes, the president of the synagogue, and gave him a beating in full view of the bench; but Gallio showed no concern whatever.

¹⁸ Sha’ul remained for some time, then said good-bye to the brothers and sailed off to Syria, after having his hair cut short in Cenchrea, because he had taken a vow; with him were Priscilla and Aquila.

¹⁹ They came to Ephesus, and he left them there; but he himself went into the synagogue and held dialogue with the Jews. ²⁰ When they asked him to stay with them longer, he declined; ²¹ however, in his farewell he said, “God willing, I will come back to you.” Then he set sail from Ephesus.

²² After landing at Caesarea, he went up to Yerushalayim and greeted the Messianic community. Then he came down to Antioch,