2 Chronicles 23

1 After Joash had been hidden in the temple for six years, Jehoiada the priest decided that it was necessary to do something. So he made an agreement with the army commanders of groups of 100 soldiers: Azariah the son of Jeroham, Ishmael the son of Jehohanan, Azariah the son of Obed, Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zicri.

And in the seventh year Joiada being encouraged, took the captains of hundreds, to wit, Azarias the son of Jeroham, and Ismahel the son of Johanan, and Azarias the son of Obed, and Maasias the son of Adaias, and Elisaphat the son of Zechri: and made a covenant with them.

2 They went throughout Judah and gathered the descendants of Levi and the leaders of Israeli families from all the towns. When they came to Jerusalem,

And they went about Juda, and gathered together the Levites out of all the cities of Juda, and the chiefs of the families of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.

3 the whole group went to the temple and made an agreement with the young king there. Jehoiada said to them, “This is the son of the previous king of Judah. So he is the one who must rule, like Yahweh promised that the descendants of King David must do.

And all the multitude made a covenant with the king in the house of God: and Joiada said to them: Behold the king’s son shall reign, as the Lord hath said of the sons of David.

4 “So this is what you must do: One-third of you priests and other descendants of Levi who are starting their work on the Sabbath day must guard the doors [of the temple].

And this is the thing that you shall do:

5 One-third of you must guard the king’s palace, and one-third of you must guard the Foundation Gate. All the other people will be in the courtyards outside the temple.

A third part of you that come to the sabbath, of the priests, and of the Levites, and of the porters, shall be at the gates: and a third part at the king’s house: and a third at the gate that is called the Foundation: but let all the rest of the people be in the courts of the house of the Lord.

6 Only the priests and the descendants of Levi who work there will enter the temple. They will be allowed to enter the temple because they are set apart [for that work]. All the others must remain in the courtyards, obeying what Yahweh has commanded.

And let no one come into the house of the Lord, but the priests, and they that minister of the Levites: let them only come in, because they are sanctified: and let all the rest of the people keep the watches of the Lord.

7 You descendants of Levi must stand around the young king, each of you with your weapon in your hand. Anyone else who tries to enter the temple you must kill. And stay close to the young king, wherever he goes.”

And let the Levites be round about the king, every man with his arms; (and if any other come into the temple, let him be slain; ) and let them be with the king, both coming in, and going out.

8 So the descendants of Levi and all [the men of] Judah did what Jehoiada had told them. He did not allow anyone to go home after having finished his work on that Sabbath day. Each commander took charge of his men, the ones who were finishing their work on that day and those who were starting their work on that day.

So the Levites, and all Juda did according to all that Joiada the high priest bad commanded: and they took every one his men that were under him, and that came in by the course of the sabbath, with those who had fulfilled the sabbath, and were to go out. For Joiada the high priest permitted not the companies to depart, which were accustomed to succeed one another every week.

9 Then Jehoiada gave each of the commanders the spears and the large and small shields that had been put there in the temple by King David.

And Joiada the priest gave to the captains the spears, and the shields, and targets of king David, which he had dedicated in the house of the Lord.

10 He commanded all the guards to stand in their positions, each with his sword in his hand, all around the king—around the altar and the temple, from the north side to the south side.

And he set all the people with swords in their hands from the right side of the temple, to the left side of the temple, before the altar, and the temple, round about the king.

11 Then Jehoiada and his sons brought Joash out. They put a crown on his head and gave him [a scroll] on which were written the rules [that the kings needed to obey], and proclaimed that he was now the king. They anointed him with olive oil and shouted, “We hope that the king will live for many years!”

And they brought out the king’s son, and put the crown upon him, and the testimony, and gave him the law to hold in his hand, and they made him king: and Joiada the high priest and his sons anointed him: and they prayed for him, and said: God save the king.

12 When Athaliah heard the noise being made by the people running [toward the king] and cheering, she ran to the temple.

Now when Athalia heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she came in to the people, into the temple of the Lord.

13 She saw the young king there, standing alongside the pillar at the entrance of the temple, [which is the place at the temple] where the kings usually stood. The army commanders and trumpet players were standing beside the king, and all the people of Judah were rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and singers with their musical instruments were leading the people while they praised God. Then Athaliah tore her robes and started screaming, “You are committing treason!”

And when she saw the king standing upon the step in the entrance, and the princes, and the companies about him, and all the people of the land rejoicing, and sounding with trumpets, and playing on instruments of divers kinds, and the voice of those that praised, she rent her garments, and said: Treason, treason.

14 Jehoiada the Supreme Priest said to the army commanders, “Kill her, but do not kill her at the temple of Yahweh!” Then he said to them, “Bring Athaliah out in front of the troops and kill anyone who tries to follow her!”

And Joiada the high priest going out to the captains, and the chiefs of the army, said to them: Take her forth without the precinct of the temple, and when she is without let her be killed with the sword. For the priest commanded that she should not be killed in the house of the Lord.

15 [She tried to flee, but] they seized her as she reached the gate where horses enter the palace area, and they killed her there.

And they laid hold on her by the neck: and when she was come within the horse gate of the palace, they killed her there.

16 Then Jehoiada made an agreement that he and the king and all the other people would be Yahweh’s people.

And Joiada made a covenant between himself and all the people, and the king, that they should be the people of the Lord.

17 Then all the people who were there went to the temple of Baal and tore it down. They smashed the altars [of Baal]. They also killed Mattan, the priest of Baal, in front of those altars.

And all the people went into the house of Baal, and destroyed it: and they broke down his altars and his idols: and they slew Mathan the priest of Baal before the altars.

18 Then Jehoiada appointed the priests, who were also descended from Levi, to work at the temple. They were part of the group to whom King David had given various jobs at the temple, to sacrifice the animals that were to be completely burned on the altar, doing what was written in the laws that Moses had given to them. He also told them to rejoice and sing, which was also what David had commanded.

And Joiada appointed overseers in the house of the Lord, under the hands of the priests, and the Levites, whom David had distributed in the house of the Lord: to offer holocausts to the Lord, as it is written in the law of Moses, with joy and singing, according to the disposition of David.

19 He also put guards at the gates of the temple in order that anyone who was unacceptable to God would not be allowed to enter.

He appointed also porters in the gates of the house of the Lord, that none who was unclean in any thing should enter in.

20 Jehoiada took with him the army commanders, the important men, the leaders and many others, and brought the king down from the temple. They went into the palace through the Upper Gate, and put the king on his throne.

And he took the captains of hundreds, and the most valiant men, and the chiefs of the people, and all the people of the land, and they brought down the king from the house of the Lord, and brought him through the upper gate into the king’s house, and set him on the royal throne.

21 Then all the people of Judah rejoiced. And there was calm throughout the city, because Athaliah had been killed.

And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet: but Athalia was slain with the sword.