Chronicles II 24

1 Joas was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem: and his mother's name was Sabia of Bersabee.

Joash was seven years old when he began to reign; he reigned for forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Zibiah, of Beersheba.

2 And Joas did that which right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jodae the priest.

Joash did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh all the days of Jehoiada, the priest.

3 And Jodae took to himself two wives, and they bore sons and daughters.

Jehoiada took for him two wives, and he became the father of sons and daughters.

4 And it came to pass afterward that it came into the heart of Joas to repair the house of the Lord.

It came about after this, that Joash decided to restore the house of Yahweh.

5 And he gathered the priests and the Levites, and said to them, Go out into the cities of Juda, and collect money of all Israel to repair the house of the Lord from year to year, and make haste to speak [of it]. But the Levites hasted not.

He gathered together the priests and the Levites, and he said to them, “Go out every year to the cities of Judah and gather from all Israel money to repair the house of your God. Make sure that you start right away.” The Levites did nothing at first.

6 And king Joas called Jodae the chief, and said to him, Why have you not looked after the Levites, so that they should bring from Juda and Jerusalem that which was prescribed by Moses the man of God, when he assembled Israel at the tabernacle of witness?

So the king called for Jehoiada the high priest and said to him, “Why have you not required the Levites to bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax levied by Moses the servant of Yahweh and by the assembly of Israel for the tent of the covenant decrees?”

7 For Gotholia was a transgressor, and her sons tore down the house of God; for they offered the holy things of the house of the Lord to Baalim.

For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken up the house of God and had given all the holy things of the house of Yahweh to the Baals.

8 And the king said, Let a box be made, and let it be put at the gate of the house of the Lord without.

So the king commanded, and they made a chest and placed it outside at the entrance to the house of Yahweh.

9 And let [men] proclaim in Juda an in Jerusalem, that [the people] should bring to the Lord, as Moses the servant of God spoke concerning Israel in the wilderness.

Then they made a proclamation through Judah and Jerusalem, for the people to bring in for Yahweh the tax that Moses the servant of God levied on Israel in the wilderness.

10 And all the princes and all the people gave, and brought in, and cast into the box until it was filled.

All the leaders and all the people rejoiced and brought money in and put it into the chest until they finished filling it.

11 And it came to pass, when they brought in the box to the officers of the king by the hand of the Levites, and when they saw that the money was more than sufficient, then came the king's scribe, and the officer of the high priest, and emptied the box, and restored it to its place. Thus they did day by day, and collected much money.

It happened that whenever the chest was brought to the king's officials by the hand of the Levites, and whenever they saw that there was much money in it, the king's scribe and the high priest's official would come, empty the chest, and take it and carry it back to its place. They did this day after day, gathering large amounts of money.

12 And the king and Jodae the priest gave it to the workmen employed in the service of the house of the Lord, and they hired masons and carpenters to repair the house of the Lord, also smiths and braziers to repair the house of the Lord.

The king and Jehoiada gave the money to those who did the work of serving in the house of Yahweh. These men hired stonemasons and carpenters to restore the house of Yahweh, and also those who worked in iron and bronze.

13 And the workmen wrought, and the works prospered in their hands, and they established the house of the Lord on its foundation, and strengthened [it].

So the workmen labored, and the work of repairing went forward in their hands; they set up the house of God in its original design and strengthened it.

14 And when they had finished [it], they brought to the king and to Jodae the remainder of the money, and they made vessels for the house of the Lord, vessels of service for whole burnt offerings, and gold and silver [censers]: and they offered up whole burnt offerings in the house of the Lord continually all the days of Jodae.

When they finished, they brought the rest of the money to the king and Jehoiada. This money was used to make furnishings for the house of Yahweh, utensils with which to serve and make offerings—spoons and utensils of gold and silver. They offered burnt offerings in the house of Yahweh continually for all the days of Jehoiada.

15 And Jodae grew old, being full of days, and he died, being a hundred and thirty years old at his death.

Jehoiada grew old and was full of days, and then he died; he was 130 years old when he died.

16 And they buried him with the kings in the city of David, because he had dealt well with Israel, and with God and his house.

They buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, toward God, and to God's house.

17 And it came to pass after the death of Jodae, [that] the princes of Juda went in, and did obeisance to the king. Then the king listened to them.

Now after the death of Jehoiada, the leaders of Judah came and did honor to the king. Then the king listened to them.

18 And they forsook the house of the Lord God of their fathers, and served the Astartes and idols: and there was wrath upon Juda and Jerusalem in that day.

They forsook the house of Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, and worshiped the Asherah gods and the idols. God's anger came on Judah and Jerusalem for this wrongdoing of theirs.

19 yet he sent prophets to them, to turn them to the Lord; but they listened not: and he testified to them, but they obeyed not.

Yet he sent prophets to them to bring them again to himself, Yahweh; the prophets testified against the people, but they refused to listen.

20 And the Spirit of God came upon Azarias the son of Jodae the priest, and he stood up above the people, and said, Thus says the Lord, Why do you transgress the commandments of the Lord? so shall you not prosper; for you have forsaken the Lord, and he will forsake you.

The Spirit of God came on Zechariah son of Jehoiada, the priest; Zechariah stood above the people and said to them, “God says this: Why do you transgress the commandments of Yahweh, so that you cannot prosper? Since you have forsaken Yahweh, he has also forsaken you.”

21 And they conspired against him, and stone him by command of king Joas in the court of the Lord's house.

But they plotted against him; at the king's command, they stoned him with stones in the courtyard of the house of Yahweh.

22 So Joas remembered not the kindness which his father Jodae had exercised towards him, but killed his son. And as he died, he said, The Lord look upon [it], and judge.

In this manner, Joash, the king, ignored the kindness that Jehoiada, Zechariah's father, had done to him. Instead, he killed Jehoiada's son. When Zechariah was dying, he said, “May Yahweh see this and call you to account.”

23 And it came to pass after the end of the year, [that] the host of Syria went up against him, and came against Juda and Jerusalem: and they killed all the chiefs of the people among the people, and all their spoils they sent to the king of Damascus.

It came about at the end of the year, that the army of Aram came up against Joash. They came to Judah and Jerusalem; they killed all the leaders of the people and sent all the plunder from them to the king of Damascus.

24 For the army of Syria came with few men, yet God gave into their hands a very large army, because they had forsaken the God of their fathers; and he brought judgments on Joas.

Although the army of the Arameans had come with only a few soldiers, Yahweh gave them victory over a very great army, because Judah had forsaken Yahweh, the God of their ancestors. In this way the Arameans brought judgment on Joash.

25 And after they had departed from him, when they had left him in sore diseases, then his servants conspired against him because of the blood of the son of Jodae the priest, and killed him on his bed, and he died, and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not in the sepulchre of the kings.

By the time that the Arameans had gone, Joash had been severely wounded. His own servants plotted against him because of the murder of the sons of Jehoiada, the priest. They killed him in his bed, and he died; they buried him in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

26 And they that conspired against him were Zabed the son of Samaath the Ammanite, and Jozabed the son of Samareth the Moabite.

These were the persons who plotted against him: Zabad son of Shimeath, an Ammonite woman; and Jehozabad son of Shimrith, a Moabite woman.

27 And all his sons, and the five came to him: and the other [matters], behold, they are written in the book of the kings. And Amasias his son reigned in his stead.

Now the accounts about his sons, the important prophecies that were spoken about him, and the rebuilding of the house of God, see, they are written in the commentary on the book of the kings. Amaziah his son became king in his place.