2 Chronicles 23
23
1 Then in the seventh year, Jehoiada having been strengthened, he took the centurions, namely, Azariah, the son of Jeroham, and Ishmael, the son of Jehohanan, and also Azariah, the son of Obed, and Maaseiah, the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat, the son of Zichri, and he formed a pact with them.
2 And traveling through Judah, they gathered together the Levites from all of the cities of Judah, and the leaders of the families of Israel, and they went to Jerusalem.
3 Then the entire multitude formed a pact with the king, in the house of God. And Jehoiada said to them: "Behold, the son of the king shall reign, just as the Lord has said concerning the sons of David.
4 Therefore, this is the word that you shall do:
5 One third part of you who arrive on the Sabbath, priests, and Levites, and porters, shall be at the gates. Truly, one third part shall be at the house of the king. And one third shall be at the gate which is called the Foundation. Yet truly, let all the remainder of the common people be in the courts of the house of the Lord.
6 Let no one else enter into the house of the Lord, except the priests, and those from the Levites who are ministering. These alone may enter, for they have been sanctified. And let all the remainder of the common people observe the watches of the Lord.
7 Then let the Levites encircle the king, each one having his weapons. And if anyone else will have entered into the temple, let him be slain. And may they be with the king, both entering and departing."
8 Then the Levites, and all of Judah, acted in accord with all that the high priest Jehoiada had instructed. And each of them took the men who were under him, and who were arriving by the course of the Sabbath, with those who had fulfilled the Sabbath and who were about to depart. For indeed the high priest Jehoiada had not permitted the companies to depart, which were accustomed to replace one another each week.
9 And Jehoiada, the priest, gave to the centurions the lances and round shields and crescent shields of king David, which he had dedicated in the house of the Lord.
10 And he positioned all the people, holding short swords, from the right part of the temple to the left part of the temple, before the altar and the temple, all around the king.
11 And they led out the son of the king. And they imposed the diadem on him, and the testimony. And they gave him the law to hold in his hand. And they appointed him as king. Also, the high priest Jehoiada and his sons anointed him. And they prayed for him, and said, "May the king live!"
12 And when Athaliah had heard it, specifically the sound of running and the praising of the king, she entered to the people in the temple of the Lord.
13 And when she had seen the king standing upon the step at the entrance, and the leaders and companies around him, and all the people of the land rejoicing, and sounding the trumpets, and playing on instruments of various kinds, and the voice of those who were praising, she tore her garments, and she said: "Treason! Treason!"
14 Then the high priest Jehoiada, going out to the centurions and to the leaders of the army, said to them: "Lead her away, beyond the borders of the temple. And let her be put to death outside, with the sword." And the priest instructed that she should not be killed in the house of the Lord.
15 And they laid hands on her neck. And when she had entered the gate for the horses at the king's house, they put her to death there.
16 Then Jehoiada formed a covenant between himself and the entire people, and the king, so that they would be the people of the Lord.
17 And so, all the people entered into the house of Baal, and they destroyed it. And they broke apart his altars and idols. Also, they put to death Mattan, the priest of Baal, before the altars.
18 Then Jehoiada appointed overseers in the house of the Lord, under the hands of the priests and Levites, whom David had distributed to the house of the Lord so that they might offer holocausts to the Lord, just as it was written in the law of Moses, with gladness and singing, in accord with the disposition of David.
19 Also, he appointed porters at the gates of the house of the Lord, so that whoever was unclean for any reason would not enter.
20 And he took the centurions, and the most valiant men, and the leaders of the people, and all the common people of the land, and they set out to descend to the king, from the house of the Lord, and to enter through the middle of the upper gate, to the house of the king. And they placed him on the royal throne.
21 And all the people of the land were rejoicing, and the city was quieted. But Athaliah was slain with the sword.
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2 Chronicles 23
23
Joash Made King
1 # For ver. 1-21, see 2 Kgs. 11:4-20 But in the seventh year Jehoiada took courage and entered into a covenant with the commanders of hundreds, 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 Zichri. 2And they went about through #See ch. 21:2Judah and gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah, and the heads of fathers’ houses of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. 3And all the assembly made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And Jehoiada#23:3 Hebrew he said to them, “Behold, the king’s son! Let him reign, #See ch. 6:16as the Lord spoke concerning the sons of David. 4This is the thing that you shall do: #[1 Chr. 9:25; 24:4]of you priests and Levites who come off duty on the Sabbath, one third shall be gatekeepers, 5and one third shall be at the king’s house and one third at the Gate of the Foundation. And all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the Lord. 6Let no one enter the house of the Lord except the priests #See 1 Chr. 23:27-29and ministering Levites. They may enter, for they are holy, but all the people shall keep the charge of the Lord. 7The Levites shall surround the king, each with his weapons in his hand. And whoever enters the house shall be put to death. Be with the king when he comes in and when he goes out.”
8The Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded, and they each brought his men, who were to go off duty on the Sabbath, with those who were to come on duty on the Sabbath, for Jehoiada the priest did not dismiss #See 1 Chr. 24the divisions. 9And Jehoiada the priest gave to the captains the spears and the large and small shields that had been King David’s, which were in the house of God. 10And he set all the people as a guard for the king, every man with his weapon in his hand, from the south side of the house to the north side of the house, around the altar and the house. 11Then they brought out the king’s son and put the crown on him and gave him #Deut. 17:18, 19 the testimony. And they proclaimed him king, and Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and they said, #See 1 Sam. 10:24“Long live the king.”
Athaliah Executed
12When Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she went into the house of the Lord to the people. 13And when she looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and the singers with their musical instruments leading in the celebration. And Athaliah tore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!” 14Then Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains who were set over the army, saying to them, “Bring her out between the ranks, and anyone who follows her is to be put to death with the sword.” For the priest said, “Do not put her to death in the house of the Lord.” 15So they laid hands on her,#23:15 Or they made a passage for her and she went into the entrance of #Neh. 3:28; Jer. 31:40; [2 Kgs. 11:16]the horse gate of the king’s house, and they put her to death there.
Jehoiada’s Reforms
16And Jehoiada made a covenant between himself and all the people and the king that they should be the Lord’s people. 17Then all the people went to the house of Baal and tore it down; his altars and his images they broke in pieces, #Deut. 13:9and they killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. 18And Jehoiada posted watchmen for the house of the Lord under the direction of #ch. 5:5; 30:27 the Levitical priests and the Levites #1 Chr. 23:6, 30, 31; 24:1 whom David had organized to be in charge of the house of the Lord, to offer burnt offerings to the Lord, #Num. 28:2 as it is written in the Law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, #[1 Chr. 25:2]according to the order of David. 19He stationed #See 1 Chr. 26:1-19the gatekeepers at the gates of the house of the Lord so that no one should enter who was in any way unclean. 20And he took the captains, the nobles, the governors of the people, and all the people of the land, and they brought the king down from the house of the Lord, marching #[2 Kgs. 11:19; 15:35]through the upper gate to the king’s house. And they set the king on the royal throne. 21So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet after Athaliah had been put to death with the sword.
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