2 Chronicles 24

1 Joash was seven years old when he became the king [of Judah], and he ruled in Jerusalem for 40 years. His mother’s name was Zibiah; she was from Beersheba [city].

Joas was seven years old when he began to reign: and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Sebia of Bersabee.

2 Joash did what pleased Yahweh as long as Jehoiada was [the Supreme] Priest.

And he did that which is good before the Lord all the days of Joiada the priest.

3 Jehoiada chose two women to be Joash’s wives. And they bore Joash sons and daughters.

And Joiada took for him two wives, by whom he had sons and daughters.

4 Some years later, Joash decided that the temple should be repaired.

After this Joas had a mind to repair the house of the Lord.

5 He summoned the priests and other descendants of Levi and said to them, “Go to the towns in Judah and collect from the people the tax money that they are required to pay each year, and use that money to pay for repairing the temple. Do it immediately.” But the descendants of Levi did not do it immediately.

And he assembled the priests, and the Levites, and said to them: Go out to the cities of Juda, and gather of all Israel money to repair the temple of your God, from year to year: and do this with speed: but the Levites were negligent.

6 So the king summoned Jehoiada and said to him, “Why have you not required the descendants of Levi to bring to Jerusalem from various places in Judah the annual/yearly tax that Moses said that the people of Judah must pay, for taking care of the Sacred Tent?”

And the king called Joiada the chief, and said to him: Why hast thou not taken care to oblige the Levites to bring in out of Juda and Jerusalem the money that was appointed by Moses the servant of the Lord for all the multitude of Israel to bring into the tabernacle of the testimony?

7 [The temple needed to be repaired] because the sons of that wicked woman Athaliah had entered into the temple [and had wrecked some of the things], and had also used some of the sacred items that were in it for [the worship of] Baal.

For that wicked woman Athalia, and her children have destroyed the house of God, and adorned the temple of Baal with all the things that had been dedicated in the temple of the Lord.

8 So, obeying what the king commanded, the descendants of Levi made a chest and placed it outside the temple, at one of the entrances.

And the king commanded, and they made a chest: and set it by the gate of the house of the Lord on the outside.

9 Then the king sent letters everywhere in Judah, requesting everyone to bring their tax money to the temple, like Moses had required the Israeli people to do [when they were] in the desert.

And they made a proclamation in Juda and Jerusalem, that every man should bring to the Lord the money which Moses the servant of God appointed for all Israel, in the desert.

10 All the officials and the other people [agreed, and they] brought their contributions gladly. They put the money into the chest until it was full.

And all the princes, and all the people rejoiced: and going In they contributed and cast so much into the chest of the Lord, that it was filled.

11 Whenever the descendants of Levi brought the chest to the king’s officials, and they saw that there was a lot of money in it, the king’s secretary and the assistant to the [Supreme] Priest would take all the money from the chest, and then put the chest back in its place. They did this frequently, and they collected a huge amount of money.

And when it was time to bring the chest before the king by the hands of the Levites, (for they saw there was much money, ) the king’s scribe, and he whom the high priest had appointed went in: and they poured out the money that was in the chest: and they carried back the chest to its place: and thus they did from day to day, and there was gathered an immense sum of money.

12 The king and Jehoiada gave the money to the men who were supervising the work of repairing the temple. Those men hired stoneworkers and carpenters to repair the temple. They also hired men who worked with iron and bronze to repair things in the temple [that were broken].

And the king and Joiada gave it to those who were over the works of the house of the Lord: but they hired with it stonecutters, and artificers of every kind of work to repair the house of the Lord: and such as wrought in iron and brass, to uphold what began to be falling.

13 The men who did the repair work worked hard, and the work of repairing the temple progressed. They rebuilt the temple so that it was like it was originally, and they even made it stronger.

And the workmen were diligent, and the breach of the walls was closed up by their hands, and they set up the house of the Lord in its former state, and made it stand firm.

14 When they had finished the repair work, they brought to the king and to Jehoiada the money that they had not used for the repairs. That money was used to make things to use for offering the sacrifices that were completely burned [on the altar], and to make bowls and other gold and silver things for the temple. As long as Joash lived, the people continually brought to the temple sacrifices that were to be completely burned on the altar.

And when they had finished all the works, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Joiada: and with it were made vessels for the temple for the ministry, and for holocausts and bowls, and other vessels of gold and silver: and holocausts were offered in the house of the Lord continually all the days of Joiada.

15 Jehoiada lived to become very old. He died when he was 130 years old.

But Joiada grew old and was full of days, and died when he was a hundred and thirty years old.

16 He was buried where the kings had been buried, in [the part of Jerusalem called] ‘The City of David’. [He was buried there] because of the good things that he had done in Judah for God and for God’s temple.

And they buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good to Israel, and to his house.

17 After Jehoiada died, the leaders of Judah went to Joash, bowed in front of him, and persuaded him to do what they wanted.

And after the death of Joiada, the princes of Juda went in, and worshipped the king: and he was soothed by their services and hearkened to them.

18 So they and the other people stopped worshiping at the temple, and they started worshiping the poles dedicated to [the goddess] Asherah and other idols. Because of their doing those sinful things, God was very angry with the people of Jerusalem and [with the people in other places in] Judah.

And they forsook the temple of the Lord the God of their fathers, and served groves and idols, and wrath came upon Juda and Jerusalem for this sin.

19 Although Yahweh sent prophets to persuade them to return to him, and although the prophets told them about the evil things that they had done, the people would not pay attention.

And he sent prophets to them to bring them back to the Lord, and they would not give ear when they testified against them.

20 Then God’s Spirit came upon Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the [Supreme] Priest. He stood up front of the people and said, “This is what God says: ‘Why are you disobeying what I, Yahweh, have commanded? You have abandoned me, so I will abandon you.’”

The spirit of God then came upon Zacharias the son of Joiada the priest, and he stood in the sight of the people, and said to them: Thus saith the Lord God: Why transgress you the commandment of the Lord which will not be for your good, and have forsaken the Lord, to make him forsake you?

21 But the people planned to kill Zechariah. And the king joined them in doing it. The people killed Zechariah by throwing stones at him in the temple courtyard.

And they gathered themselves together against him, and stoned him at the king’s commandment in the court of the house of the Lord.

22 King Joash had forgotten about how Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had been kind to him. That’s why he gave orders for the people to kill Jehoiada’s son Zechariah, who said as he was dying, “I hope that Yahweh will see [what you are doing to me] and punish [you for doing it].”

And king Joas did not remember the kindness that Joiada his father had done to him, but killed his son. And when he died, he said: The Lord see, and require it.

23 Near the end of that year (OR, early in the following year), the army of Syria marched to attack [the army of] Joash. They invaded Judah and attacked Jerusalem and killed all the leaders of the people. They [seized many valuable things and] sent them to their king in Damascus, [their capital city.]

And when a year was come about, the army of Syria came up against him: and they came to Juda and Jerusalem, and killed all the princes of the people, and they sent all the spoils to the king of Damascus.

24 The army of Syria [that came to Judah] was very small, but Yahweh allowed them to defeat the large army of Judah, because he was punishing Joash and the other people of Judah for having abandoned him, the God whom their ancestors worshiped.

And whereas there came a very small number of the Syrians, the Lord delivered into their hands an infinite multitude, because they had forsaken the Lord the God of their fathers: and on Joas they executed shameful judgments.

25 Before the battle ended, Joash was severely wounded. Then his officials decided to kill him for murdering Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the [Supreme] Priest. They killed him while he was in his bed. He was buried in [the part of Jerusalem called] ‘The City of David’, but they did not bury him in the place where the other kings had been buried.

And departing they left him in diseases: and his servants rose up him, for revenge of the blood of the son of Joiada the priest, and they slew him in his bed, and he died: and they buried him in the city of David, but not in the sepulchres of the kings.

26 Those who conspired to kill him were Zabad the son of Shimeath, who was a woman from the Ammon [people-group], and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith, who was a woman from the Moab [people-group].

Now the men that conspired against him were Zabad the son of Semmaath an Ammonitess, and Jozabad the son of Semarith a Moabitess.

27 An account of the things that were done by the sons of Joash and the many prophecies about Joash and what he did to repair the temple are written in the scroll called ‘the History of the Kings [of Judah and Israel]’. Then after Joash died, Amaziah his son became the king.

And concerning his sons, and the sum of money which was gathered under him, and the repairing the house of God; they are written more diligently in the book of kings: and Amasias his son reigned in his stead.