2 Chronicles, 24

1. Joash [was] seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also [was] Zibiah of Beersheba.

1. Joash was seven years old when he became king and he reigned for forty years in Jerusalem. His mother was Zibiah of Beersheba.

2. And Joash did [that which was] right in the sight of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest.

2. Joash did what is pleasing to Yahweh throughout the lifetime of Jehoiada the priest.

3. And Jehoiada took for him two wives; and he begat sons and daughters.

3. Jehoiada found him two wives and he had sons and daughters.

4. And it came to pass after this, [that] Joash was minded to repair the house of the LORD.

4. After that Joash decided to repair Yahweh's House.

5. And he gathered together the priests and the Levites, and said to them, Go out unto the cities of Judah, and gather of all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year, and see that ye hasten the matter. Howbeit the Levites hastened [it] not.

5. Calling the priests and the Levites together, he said, "Go out to the towns of Judah, and collect enough money from all the Israelites to make possible annual repairs on the house of God. Do this quickly." But the Levites were in no hurry,

6. And the king called for Jehoiada the chief, and said unto him, Why hast thou not required of the Levites to bring in out of Judah and out of Jerusalem the collection, [according to the commandment] of Moses the servant of the LORD, and of the congregation of Israel, for the tabernacle of witness?

6. so the king called Jehoiada for he was their head, and said, "Why have you not insisted on the Levites collecting from Judah and Jerusalem the tax which Moses, the servant of Yahweh, required the people to pay for the maintenance of the Tent of the Meeting?

7. For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken up the house of God; and also all the dedicated things of the house of the LORD did they bestow upon Baalim.

7. Athaliah and her sons, whom she perverted, damaged the house of God and even used many of the sacred objects in the worship of Baal."

8. And at the king's commandment they made a chest, and set it without at the gate of the house of the LORD.

8. So the king ordered them to make a chest and to place it outside the gate of Yahweh's House.

9. And they made a proclamation through Judah and Jerusalem, to bring in to the LORD the collection [that] Moses the servant of God [laid] upon Israel in the wilderness.

9. And they announced throughout Judah and Jerusalem that they had to bring to Yahweh the tax Moses, that servant of God, had required in the wilderness.

10. And all the princes and all the people rejoiced, and brought in, and cast into the chest, until they had made an end.

10. All the officials and all the people came joyfully with their contribution, dropping it into the chest until all was paid.

11. Now it came to pass, that at what time the chest was brought unto the king's office by the hand of the Levites, and when they saw that [there was] much money, the king's scribe and the high priest's officer came and emptied the chest, and took it, and carried it to his place again. Thus they did day by day, and gathered money in abundance.

11. The chest was taken to the royal office of control by the Levites whenever they saw that there was a great amount of money in it. The king's secretary then came with representatives of the chief priest to take the chest, empty it of money and later return it to its place. They did this every day, and collected a large sum of money.

12. And the king and Jehoiada gave it to such as did the work of the service of the house of the LORD, and hired masons and carpenters to repair the house of the LORD, and also such as wrought iron and brass to mend the house of the LORD.

12. The king and Jehoiada gave the money to those who were in charge of repairing the House, and they hired men, masons and carpenters, who set about restoring Yahweh's House; craftsmen in iron and bronze also worked on the repairing of it.

13. So the workmen wrought, and the work was perfected by them, and they set the house of God in his state, and strengthened it.

13. The supervisors having once made a start, the repairs went ahead; they rebuilt the house of God as it was before, as solid as ever.

14. And when they had finished [it], they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada, whereof were made vessels for the house of the LORD, [even] vessels to minister, and to offer [withal], and spoons, and vessels of gold and silver. And they offered burnt offerings in the house of the LORD continually all the days of Jehoiada.

14. When they had finished, they brought the balance of the money to the king and Jehoiada, and from this, furnishings were made for Yahweh's House, vessels for the liturgy and for the burnt offerings, incense boats and objects of gold and silver. So, for as long as Jehoiada lived they offered sacrifices regularly in Yahweh's House.

15. But Jehoiada waxed old, and was full of days when he died; an hundred and thirty years old [was he] when he died.

15. Then Jehoiada, growing old, had his fill of days and died. He died at the age of a hundred and thirty years,

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

16. and they buried him with the kings in the City of David because he had served Israel well and also God and his house.

17. Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah, and made obeisance to the king. Then the king hearkened unto them.

17. After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came to pay court to the king, and the king now turned to them for advice.

18. And they left the house of the LORD God of their fathers, and served groves and idols: and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their trespass.

18. The Judaeans abandoned the house of Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, for the worship of sacred trunks and idols and God's anger fell on Judah and Jerusalem because of their guilt.

19. Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again unto the LORD; and they testified against them: but they would not give ear.

19. He sent them prophets to bring them back to Yahweh, but when the prophets spoke, they would not listen.

20. And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you.

20. The spirit of God took control of Zechariah, son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood up before the people and said, "God says this: Why are you disobeying the commandments of Yahweh? You cannot prosper. You have abandoned Yahweh and he will abandon you."

21. And they conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the LORD.

21. They then plotted against him and by order of the king stoned him in the court of Yahweh's House.

22. Thus Joash the king remembered not the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but slew his son. And when he died, he said, The LORD look upon [it], and require [it].

22. King Joash forgot the kindness of Jehoiada, the father of Zechariah, and killed Jehoiada's son who cried out as he died, "Let Yahweh see and do justice!"

23. And it came to pass at the end of the year, [that] the host of Syria came up against him: and they came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people, and sent all the spoil of them unto the king of Damascus.

23. When a year had gone by, the Aramaean army made war on Joash. They reached Judah and Jerusalem, and killed all the officials among the people, sending back to the king of Damascus all that they had plundered from them.

24. For the army of the Syrians came with a small company of men, and the LORD delivered a very great host into their hand, because they had forsaken the LORD God of their fathers. So they executed judgment against Joash.

24. Though the Aramaean army was small, Yahweh delivered into its power an army of great size for they had abandoned him, the God of their ancestors.

25. And when they were departed from him, (for they left him in great diseases,) his own servants conspired against him for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and slew him on his bed, and he died: and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not in the sepulchres of the kings.

25. The Aramaeans wounded Joash and when they withdrew they left him a very sick man; and his officers, plotting against him to avenge the death of the son of Jehoiada the priest, murdered him in his bed. So he died, and they buried him in the City of David, though not in the tombs of the king.

26. And these are they that conspired against him; Zabad the son of Shimeath an Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith a Moabitess.

26. These were the conspirators: Zabad son of Shimeath the Ammonite woman, and Jehozabad son of Shimrith the Moabitess.

27. Now [concerning] his sons, and the greatness of the burdens [laid] upon him, and the repairing of the house of God, behold, they [are] written in the story of the book of the kings. And Amaziah his son reigned in his stead.

27. As regard his sons, the heavy tribute he demanded, and the restoration of the house of God, this is all recorded in the commentary on the Book of the Kings. His son Amaziah succeeded him.