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Queen Athaliah of Judah

(2 Chronicles 22.10-12)

11 As soon as Athaliah heard that her son King Ahaziah was dead, she decided to kill any relative who could possibly become king. She would have done that, but Jehosheba rescued Joash son of Ahaziah just as he was about to be murdered. Jehosheba, who was Jehoram's[a] daughter and Ahaziah's half sister, hid her nephew Joash and his personal servant in a bedroom in the Lord's temple where he was safe from Athaliah. Joash hid in the temple with Jehosheba[b] for six years while Athaliah ruled as queen of Judah.

Jehoiada Makes Joash King of Judah

(2 Chronicles 23.1-21)

Joash son of Ahaziah had hidden in the Lord's temple six years. Then in the seventh year, Jehoiada the priest sent for the commanders of the king's special bodyguards[c] and the commanders of the palace guards. They met him at the temple, and he asked them to make a promise in the name of the Lord. Then he brought out Joash and said to them:

Here's what I want you to do. Three of your guard units will be on duty on the Sabbath. I want one unit to guard the palace. Another unit will guard Sur Gate, and the third unit will guard the palace gate and relieve the palace guards.

The other two guard units are supposed to be off duty on the Sabbath. But I want both of them to stay here at the temple and protect King Joash. Make sure they follow him wherever he goes, and tell them to keep their swords ready to kill anyone who tries to get near him.

The commanders followed Jehoiada's orders. Each one called together his guards—those coming on duty and those going off duty. 10 Jehoiada brought out the swords and shields that had belonged to King David and gave them to the commanders. 11 Then they gave the weapons to their guards, who took their positions around the temple and the altar to protect Joash on every side.

12 Jehoiada brought Joash outside, where he placed the crown on his head and gave him a copy of instructions for ruling the nation. Olive oil was poured on his head to show that he was now king, while the crowd clapped and shouted, “Long live the king!”

13 Queen Athaliah heard the crowd and went to the temple. 14 (A) There she saw Joash standing by one of the columns, which was the usual place for the king. The singers[d] and the trumpet players were standing next to him, and the people were celebrating and blowing trumpets. Athaliah tore her clothes in anger and shouted, “You betrayed me, you traitors!”

15 At once, Jehoiada said to the army commanders, “Kill her! But don't do it anywhere near the Lord's temple. Take her out in front of the troops and kill anyone who is with her!” 16 So the commanders dragged her to the gate where horses are led into the palace, and they killed her there.

17 Jehoiada the priest asked King Joash and the people to promise that they would be faithful to each other and to the Lord. 18 Then the crowd went to the temple built to honor Baal and tore it down. They smashed the altars and idols and killed Mattan the priest of Baal right in front of the altars.

After Jehoiada had placed guards around the Lord's temple, 19 he called together all the commanders, the king's special bodyguards,[e] the palace guards, and the people. They led Joash from the temple, through the Guards' Gate, and into the palace. He took his place on the throne and became king of Judah. 20 Everyone celebrated because Athaliah had been killed and Jerusalem was peaceful again. 21 Joash was only seven years old when this happened.

King Joash of Judah

(2 Chronicles 24.1-16)

12 Joash[f] became king of Judah in Jehu's seventh year as king of Israel, and he ruled 40 years from Jerusalem. His mother Zibiah was from the town of Beersheba.

Jehoiada the priest taught Joash what was right, and so for the rest of his life Joash obeyed the Lord. But even Joash did not destroy the local shrines,[g] and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.

(B) One day, Joash said to the priests, “Collect all the money that has been given to the Lord's temple, whether from taxes or gifts, and use it to repair the temple whenever you see the need.”

But the priests never started repairing the temple. So in the twenty-third year of his rule, Joash called for Jehoiada and the other priests and said, “Why aren't you using the money to repair the temple? Don't take any more money for yourselves. It is only to be used to pay for the repairs.” The priests agreed that they would not collect any more money or be in charge of the temple repairs.

Jehoiada found a wooden box; he cut a hole in the top of it and set it on the right side of the altar where people went into the temple. Whenever someone gave money to the temple, the priests guarding the entrance would put it into this box. 10 When the box was full of money, the king's secretary and the chief priest would count the money and put it in bags. 11 Then they would give it to the men supervising the repairs to the temple. Some of the money was used to pay the builders, the woodworkers, 12 the stonecutters, and the men who built the walls. And some was used to buy wood and stone and to pay any other costs for repairing the temple.

13 While the repairs were being made, the money that was given to the temple was not used to make silver bowls, lamp snuffers, small sprinkling bowls, trumpets, or anything gold or silver for the temple. 14 It went only to pay for repairs. 15 (C) The men in charge were honest, so no one had to keep track of the money.

16 (D) The fines that had to be paid along with the sacrifices to make things right and the sacrifices for sin did not go to the temple. This money belonged only to the priests.

17 About the same time, King Hazael of Syria attacked the town of Gath and captured it. Next, he decided to attack Jerusalem. 18 So Joash collected everything he and his ancestors Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah had dedicated to the Lord, as well as the gold in the storage rooms in the temple and palace. He sent it all to Hazael as a gift, and when Hazael received it, he ordered his troops to leave Jerusalem.

19 Everything else Joash did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. 20-21 At the end of his rule, some of his officers rebelled against him. Jozabad[h] son of Shimeath and Jehozabad son of Shomer murdered him in a building where the land was filled in on the east side of Jerusalem,[i] near the road to Silla. Joash was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem,[j] and his son Amaziah became king.

King Jehoahaz of Israel

13 Jehoahaz son of Jehu became king of Israel in the twenty-third year of Joash's rule in Judah. Jehoahaz ruled 17 years from Samaria and disobeyed the Lord by doing wrong. He never stopped following the example of Jeroboam, who had caused the Israelites to sin.

The Lord was angry with the Israelites, so he let King Hazael of Syria and his son Benhadad rule over them for a long time. Jehoahaz prayed to the Lord for help, and the Lord saw how terribly Hazael was treating the Israelites. He answered Jehoahaz by sending Israel a leader who rescued them from the Syrians,[k] and the Israelites lived in peace as they had before. 6-7 But Hazael had defeated Israel's army so badly that Jehoahaz had only 10 chariots, 50 cavalry troops, and 10,000 regular soldiers left in his army.

The Israelites kept sinning and following the example of Jeroboam's family. They did not tear down the sacred poles[l] that had been set up in Samaria for the worship of the goddess Asherah.

Everything else Jehoahaz did while he was king, including his brave deeds, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. Jehoahaz died and was buried in Samaria, and his son Jehoash became king.

King Jehoash of Israel

10 Jehoash became king of Israel in the thirty-seventh year of Joash's rule in Judah, and he ruled 16 years from Samaria. 11 He disobeyed the Lord by doing just like Jeroboam, who had caused the Israelites to sin.

12 Everything else Jehoash did while he was king, including his war against King Amaziah of Judah, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 13 Jehoash died and was buried in Samaria beside the other Israelite kings. His son Jeroboam then became king.

Elisha the Prophet Dies

14 (E) Some time before the death of King Jehoash, Elisha the prophet was very sick and about to die. Jehoash went in and stood beside him, crying. He said, “Master, what will Israel's chariots and cavalry be able to do without you?”[m]

15-16 “Grab a bow and some arrows,” Elisha told him, “and hold them in your hand.” Jehoash grabbed the bow and arrows and held them. Elisha placed his hand on the king's hand 17 and said, “Open the window facing east.” When it was open, Elisha shouted, “Now shoot!” Jehoash shot an arrow and Elisha said, “That arrow is a sign that the Lord will help you completely defeat the Syrian army at Aphek.”

18 Elisha said, “Pick up the arrows and hit the ground with them.” Jehoash grabbed the arrows and hit the ground three times, then stopped. 19 Elisha became angry with the king and exclaimed, “If you had struck it five or six times, you would completely wipe out the Syrians. Now you will defeat them only three times.”

20 Elisha died and was buried.

Every year in the spring, Moab's leaders sent raiding parties into Israel. 21 Once, while some Israelites were burying a man's body, they saw a group of Moabites. The Israelites quickly threw the body into Elisha's tomb and ran away. As soon as the man's body touched the bones of Elisha, the man came back to life and stood up.

Israel Defeats Syria

22 Israel was under the power of King Hazael of Syria during the entire rule of Jehoahaz. 23 But the Lord was kind to the Israelites and showed them mercy because of his solemn agreement with their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In fact, he has never turned his back on them or let them be completely destroyed.

24 Hazael died, and his son Benhadad then became king of Syria. 25 King Jehoash of Israel attacked and defeated the Syrian army three times. He took back from Benhadad all the towns Hazael had captured in battle from his father Jehoahaz.

King Amaziah of Judah

(2 Chronicles 25.1-24)

14 Amaziah son of Joash became king of Judah in the second year of Jehoash's rule in Israel. Amaziah was 25 years old when he became king, and he ruled 29 years from Jerusalem, which was also the hometown of his mother Jehoaddin.

Amaziah followed the example of his father Joash by obeying the Lord and doing right. But he was not as faithful as his ancestor David. Amaziah did not destroy the local shrines, and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.

As soon as Amaziah had control of Judah, he arrested and killed the officers who had murdered his father. (F) But the children of those officers were not killed. The Lord had commanded in the Law of Moses that only the people who sinned were to be punished, not their parents or children.[n]

While Amaziah was king, he killed 10,000 Edomite soldiers in Salt Valley. He captured the town of Sela and renamed it Joktheel, which is still its name.

One day, Amaziah sent a message to King Jehoash of Israel: “Come out and face me in battle!”

Jehoash sent back this reply:

Once upon a time, a small thornbush in Lebanon announced that his son was going to marry the daughter of a large cedar tree. But a wild animal came along and trampled the small bush.

10 Amaziah, you think you're so powerful because you defeated Edom. Go ahead and celebrate—but stay at home. If you cause any trouble, both you and your kingdom of Judah will be destroyed.

11 But Amaziah refused to listen. So Jehoash and his troops marched to the town of Beth-Shemesh in Judah to attack Amaziah and his troops. 12 During the battle, Judah's army was crushed. Every soldier from Judah ran back home, 13 and Jehoash captured Amaziah.

Jehoash then marched to Jerusalem and broke down the city wall from Ephraim Gate to Corner Gate, a section nearly 200 meters long. 14 He took the gold and silver, as well as everything of value from the Lord's temple and the king's treasury. He took hostages, then returned to Samaria.

15 Everything else Jehoash did while he was king, including his brave deeds and how he defeated King Amaziah of Judah, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 16 Jehoash died and was buried in Samaria beside the other Israelite kings. His son Jeroboam then became king.

17 Fifteen years after Jehoash died, 18-20 some people in Jerusalem plotted against Amaziah. He was able to escape to the town of Lachish, but another group of people caught him and killed him there. His body was taken back to Jerusalem on horseback and buried beside his ancestors.

Everything else Amaziah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah.

Footnotes

  1. 11.2 Jehoram's: The Hebrew text has “Joram's,” another spelling of the name.
  2. 11.3 Jehosheba: Jehosheba was the wife of Jehoiada the priest (see 2 Chronicles 22.11), which is why she could hide Joash in one of the private bedrooms used only by the priests.
  3. 11.4 the king's special bodyguards: The Hebrew text has “the Carites,” who were probably foreign soldiers hired to serve as royal bodyguards.
  4. 11.14 singers: Two ancient translations; Hebrew “commanders.”
  5. 11.19 the king's special bodyguards: See the note at verse 4.
  6. 12.1 Joash: The Hebrew text has “Jehoash,” another spelling of the name.
  7. 12.3 local shrines: The Hebrew text has “high places,” which were local places to worship God or foreign gods.
  8. 12.20,21 Jozabad: Some manuscripts of the Hebrew text; other manuscripts “Jozacar.”
  9. 12.20,21 where … Jerusalem: The Hebrew text has “on the Millo,” which probably refers to a landfill to strengthen and extend the hill where the city was built.
  10. 12.20,21 Jerusalem: See the note at 8.24.
  11. 13.5 by sending … the Syrians: The name of this leader is not given, but it may refer to Elisha the prophet, King Jehoash of Israel, or his son King Jeroboam.
  12. 13.6,7 sacred poles: Or “trees,” used as symbols of Asherah, the goddess of fertility.
  13. 13.14 Master … without you: Or “Master, you were like chariots and cavalry for Israel!”
  14. 14.6 The Lord had commanded … children: See Deuteronomy 24.16.

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