Jehoiada

1Athaliah was the mother of King Ahaziah. When she saw that her son was dead, she acted. She killed everyone in the royal family who might become king.

And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal.

NoteIn those days a king's son became the next king after him. Athaliah killed the boys in the family so that she could rule instead.

2But Jehosheba was the daughter of King Joram and the sister of Ahaziah. She took Joash, the little son of Ahaziah, away from the king's sons who were being killed. She hid him and his nurse in a bedroom. Athaliah never found him, so he was not killed.

But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons which were slain; and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain.

NoteJehosheba was Joash's aunt. A nurse was a woman who fed a baby and cared for him. Joash was still very small.

3Joash stayed hidden with his nurse in the temple, God's house, for six years. All that time Athaliah ruled the land.

And he was with her hid in the house of the LORD six years. And Athaliah did reign over the land.

NoteThe temple was God's house in Jerusalem. It had many side rooms where the priests lived, so a child could stay hidden there.

4In the seventh year, a priest named Jehoiada sent for the army commanders and the palace guards. He brought them into the temple. He made an agreement with them and had them promise to keep it. Then he showed them the king's son.

And the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard, and brought them to him into the house of the LORD, and made a covenant with them, and took an oath of them in the house of the LORD, and shewed them the king’s son.

NoteA priest was a man whose job was to lead worship at God's house. The agreement he made was a strong promise that everyone meant to keep.

5He told them what to do. One third of you who start work on the Sabbath, the weekly rest day, will guard the palace.

And he commanded them, saying, This is the thing that ye shall do; A third part of you that enter in on the sabbath shall even be keepers of the watch of the king’s house;

NoteThe guards worked in turns. On the Sabbath one group started work and another group went home to rest.

6One third of you will stand at the gate of Sur. One third will stand at the gate behind the guards. Take turns watching over the temple.

And a third part shall be at the gate of Sur; and a third part at the gate behind the guard: so shall ye keep the watch of the house, that it be not broken down.

NoteNobody today knows where the gate of Sur was. It was one of the ways into the palace.

7The two groups who would normally go home that day have a job too. They will guard the temple and stay close around the king.

And two parts of all you that go forth on the sabbath, even they shall keep the watch of the house of the LORD about the king.

8Stand in a circle around the king with your weapons ready. Anyone who tries to push through your lines must be killed. Stay with the king wherever he goes.

And ye shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand: and he that cometh within the ranges, let him be slain: and be ye with the king as he goeth out and as he cometh in.

9The commanders did just what Jehoiada the priest told them. Each one gathered his men. He took both those starting work and those finishing. Then they came to Jehoiada the priest.

And the captains over the hundreds did according to all things that Jehoiada the priest commanded: and they took every man his men that were to come in on the sabbath, with them that should go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest.

10The priest gave the commanders the spears and shields that had belonged to King David. They had been kept in the temple.

And to the captains over hundreds did the priest give king David’s spears and shields, that were in the temple of the LORD.

NoteKing David had ruled the land long before this. His old spears and shields had been kept safe in the temple for many years.

11The guards stood around the king with their weapons ready. They lined up from one side of the temple to the other. They stood near the altar and the temple building.

And the guard stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, round about the king, from the right corner of the temple to the left corner of the temple, along by the altar and the temple.

NoteAn altar was a stone table. People burned gifts to God on top of it.

12Jehoiada brought out the king's son. He put the crown on his head and handed him the Testimony. They made him king and poured oil on him. The people clapped their hands and shouted, "Long live the king!"

And he brought forth the king’s son, and put the crown upon him, and gave him the testimony; and they made him king, and anointed him; and they clapped their hands, and said, God save the king.

NoteA crown is a gold circle worn on the head to show that someone is king. The Testimony was a copy of God's rules for the king to keep. Pouring oil on his head was a way of showing that God had picked him for the job. "Long live the king" was a happy shout, wishing him many years.

13Athaliah heard the noise of the guards and the people. So she came out to the people at the temple.

And when Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she came to the people into the temple of the LORD.

14She looked and saw the young king standing by the pillar, the way kings always did. Officers and trumpet players stood beside him. All the people of the land were glad and blew their trumpets. Athaliah tore her clothes and screamed, "Treason! Treason!" She meant that people had turned against her.

And when she looked, behold, the king stood by a pillar, as the manner was, and the princes and the trumpeters by the king, and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew with trumpets: and Athaliah rent her clothes, and cried, Treason, Treason.

NoteA pillar is a tall stone post inside a building. Kings stood in that same spot for important moments. The trumpets were long horns, blown when something big and happy happened. When people were very upset or angry, they tore their own clothes so everyone could see how they felt.

15Jehoiada the priest gave an order to the army commanders. He said, "Take her out between the rows of guards. Kill anyone who follows her." The priest had said she must not be killed inside the temple.

But Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of the hundreds, the officers of the host, and said unto them, Have her forth without the ranges: and him that followeth her kill with the sword. For the priest had said, Let her not be slain in the house of the LORD.

16So they took hold of her. She was led to the gate where horses go into the palace. There she was killed.

And they laid hands on her; and she went by the way by the which the horses came into the king’s house: and there was she slain.

17Then Jehoiada made an agreement between the LORD, the king, and the people. They promised to be the LORD's people. He also made an agreement between the king and the people.

And Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people, that they should be the LORD’s people; between the king also and the people.

NoteThe LORD is God's own name in this book. A promise this serious was called a covenant.

18All the people of the land went to the temple of Baal, a false god. They tore it down. They smashed his altars and statues to pieces. They killed Mattan, the priest of Baal, in front of the altars. Then Jehoiada put guards at the house of the LORD.

And all the people of the land went into the house of Baal, and brake it down; his altars and his images brake they in pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest appointed officers over the house of the LORD.

NoteBaal was a god that some people prayed to instead of the LORD. The statues were carved figures of him that people bowed down to.

19Jehoiada took the commanders, the king's own soldiers, the guards, and all the people with him. They brought the king down from the temple to the palace. They went in through the Gate of the Guards. Then the king sat down on the royal throne.

And he took the rulers over hundreds, and the captains, and the guard, and all the people of the land; and they brought down the king from the house of the LORD, and came by the way of the gate of the guard to the king’s house. And he sat on the throne of the kings.

NoteA throne is the special chair a king sits in when he rules.

20All the people of the land were glad, and the city was calm and quiet. Athaliah had been killed with a sword beside the palace.

And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was in quiet: and they slew Athaliah with the sword beside the king’s house.

21Joash was seven years old when he became king.

Seven years old was Jehoash when he began to reign.

NoteJoash had been hidden away since he was a baby. He was still a child, so Jehoiada the priest helped him.

1Jehu had been king of Israel for seven years. That is when Joash became king of Judah. He ruled in Jerusalem for forty years. His mother was Zibiah, from a town called Beersheba.

In the seventh year of Jehu Jehoash began to reign; and forty years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba.

NoteGod's people lived in two lands with two kings. Israel was in the north. Judah was in the south. Jehu was king in Israel. Joash was king in Judah. The King James calls him "Jehoash" here and "Joash" later. Both names belong to the same boy king.

2Joash did what was right in the LORD's eyes. He did this all the time that Jehoiada the priest taught him. A priest was a man who served God at the temple.

And Jehoash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him.

NoteThe temple was God's house in Jerusalem. It was a big stone building. People came there to worship God and bring gifts. When you see "the LORD" in big letters, that is God's own special name.

3But the high places were not torn down. These were altars on hills. People still burned offerings and sweet-smelling incense there.

But the high places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.

NoteAn altar is a stone table for gifts given to God. People burned animals and grain on it. Incense is a spice that smells sweet when it burns. God had told the people to bring their gifts to the temple only. The high places were altars people built on hilltops instead.

4Joash spoke to the priests. He said, "Gather all the money people give to the LORD's house. That means the money each person owes when they are counted. It also means money from promises people make. And it means gifts people bring because they want to.

And Jehoash said to the priests, All the money of the dedicated things that is brought into the house of the LORD, even the money of every one that passeth the account, the money that every man is set at, and all the money that cometh into any man’s heart to bring into the house of the LORD,

NoteEvery so often the people were all counted. Each grown man paid a small piece of silver then. That silver was used for the temple. Some people also promised God a gift and paid it later.

5Let each priest take the money from the people he knows. Then use it to fix any broken part of the temple."

Let the priests take it to them, every man of his acquaintance: and let them repair the breaches of the house, wheresoever any breach shall be found.

NoteThe King James says "breaches." That means cracks and broken places in the walls. The temple was old, and parts of it were falling apart.

6But by the twenty-third year that Joash was king, the priests still had not fixed the temple.

But it was so, that in the three and twentieth year of king Jehoash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the house.

NoteJoash had been king for twenty-three years by now. That is a very long time to wait for repairs.

7So King Joash called for Jehoiada and the other priests. He asked, "Why have you not fixed the temple? Do not take any more money from the people you know. Hand it over so the temple can be fixed."

Then king Jehoash called for Jehoiada the priest, and the other priests, and said unto them, Why repair ye not the breaches of the house? now therefore receive no more money of your acquaintance, but deliver it for the breaches of the house.

8The priests agreed. They would not collect money from the people anymore. And they would not do the repairs themselves.

And the priests consented to receive no more money of the people, neither to repair the breaches of the house.

9Then Jehoiada the priest took a box. He cut a hole in the lid. He set it beside the altar, on the right as you walk in. The priests who guarded the door put all the gift money in it.

But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one cometh into the house of the LORD: and the priests that kept the door put therein all the money that was brought into the house of the LORD.

NoteMoney back then was not coins like ours. It was pieces of silver, weighed on a little scale. Some priests had the job of guarding the temple doors.

10When they saw the box held a lot of money, two men came. One was the king's writer, and one was the head priest. They counted the money and tied it up in bags.

And it was so, when they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king’s scribe and the high priest came up, and they put up in bags, and told the money that was found in the house of the LORD.

NoteThe king's writer kept the king's records. He wrote down lists and numbers. The head priest was the priest in charge of all the other priests.

11They handed the counted money to the men in charge of the work. Those men paid the workers who fixed the LORD's house. They paid the wood workers and the builders.

And they gave the money, being told, into the hands of them that did the work, that had the oversight of the house of the LORD: and they laid it out to the carpenters and builders, that wrought upon the house of the LORD,

12They also paid the men who worked with stone. They bought wood and cut stone to fix the broken parts. They paid for everything the repairs needed.

And to masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the LORD, and for all that was laid out for the house to repair it.

13The gift money was not used to make silver bowls or cups. It was not used for tools to trim lamp wicks, or for trumpets. No gold or silver dishes were made with it.

Howbeit there were not made for the house of the LORD bowls of silver, snuffers, basons, trumpets, any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the house of the LORD:

NoteLamps then burned oil with a cloth wick. Snuffers were small tools for trimming the burnt wick. Trimming kept the flame bright and clean. Priests blew trumpets at the temple on special days. All these things were kept in God's house.

14Instead, all of it was paid to the workers. With that money they fixed the LORD's house.

But they gave that to the workmen, and repaired therewith the house of the LORD.

15No one made the money handlers show records. Those men were honest, so they were trusted.

Moreover they reckoned not with the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to be bestowed on workmen: for they dealt faithfully.

16Some money came from offerings people gave when they did wrong. That money did not go to the temple work. It belonged to the priests.

The trespass money and sin money was not brought into the house of the LORD: it was the priests’.

NoteWhen people did something wrong, they brought a gift to God. Priests did not have farms or land of their own. Gifts like these were how priests got their food.

10Athaliah was Ahaziah's mother. When she saw that her son was dead, she began killing the whole royal family of Judah.

But when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah.

NoteThe royal family means the king's children and close relatives. Long ago, a person taking over sometimes killed them all. Then no one was left who could take the throne back.

11But Jehoshabeath, a daughter of King Jehoram, took Joash, the baby son of Ahaziah. She stole him away from the king's sons who were being killed. She hid him and the woman who cared for him in a bedroom. Jehoshabeath was Ahaziah's sister and the wife of Jehoiada the priest. She hid Joash from Athaliah, so Athaliah could not kill him.

But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons that were slain, and put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest, (for she was the sister of Ahaziah,) hid him from Athaliah, so that she slew him not.

NoteA priest was a man whose job was to lead people in worshiping God. The woman who cared for Joash fed him and looked after him, like a babysitter who lived with the family.

12Joash stayed hidden with them in God's house for six years. During those years, Athaliah ruled the land.

And he was with them hid in the house of God six years: and Athaliah reigned over the land.

NoteGod's house was the temple in Jerusalem. It was the special building where people came to worship God.

1In the seventh year, Jehoiada the priest felt brave and ready. He made a promise with five army leaders who each led a hundred men. They were Azariah son of Jeroham, Ishmael son of Jehohanan, Azariah son of Obed, Maaseiah son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat son of Zichri.

And in the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened himself, and took the captains of hundreds, Azariah the son of Jeroham, and Ishmael the son of Jehohanan, and Azariah the son of Obed, and Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri, into covenant with him.

NoteA priest was a man who led worship at God's house. Jehoiada was the chief priest in Jerusalem. The king's baby son had been hidden for six years. A woman named Athaliah had made herself ruler instead. The King James word for this promise is "covenant." A covenant is a very strong promise people keep no matter what. "Captains of hundreds" were army leaders in charge of a hundred soldiers each.

2These men traveled all around Judah. They gathered the Levites, the men who helped at God's house, from every town. They also gathered the leaders of the big family groups. Then everyone came to Jerusalem.

And they went about in Judah, and gathered the Levites out of all the cities of Judah, and the chief of the fathers of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.

NoteThe Levites all came from one family, the family of Levi. Their job was helping the priests at God's house. God's people were split into large family groups called tribes. Each tribe had older men who led it.

3The whole group made a promise with the king at God's house. Jehoiada said to them, "Look, here is the king's son. He will be king, just as the LORD promised about David's family.

And all the congregation made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And he said unto them, Behold, the king’s son shall reign, as the LORD hath said of the sons of David.

NoteLong before this, God made a promise to King David. Someone from David's own family would be king. That is what "the sons of David" means here.

4Here is what you must do. You priests and Levites who start work on the Sabbath will split into three groups. One group will guard the doors.

This is the thing that ye shall do; A third part of you entering on the sabbath, of the priests and of the Levites, shall be porters of the doors;

NoteThe Sabbath was one special day each week. People rested from work and worshiped God. The priests and Levites took turns doing their jobs. A new turn started on the Sabbath day.

5One group will guard the king's palace. One group will guard the Foundation Gate. Everyone else will stand in the yards of the LORD's house.

And a third part shall be at the king’s house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation: and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the LORD.

NoteThe Foundation Gate was one of the doorways into the temple area. Nobody today knows just where it stood.

6No one may go inside the LORD's house except the priests and the Levites who serve there. They may go in because they are set apart for God. Everyone else must stay outside and do as the LORD said.

But let none come into the house of the LORD, save the priests, and they that minister of the Levites; they shall go in, for they are holy: but all the people shall keep the watch of the LORD.

Note"Set apart for God" is the King James word "holy." The priests washed and dressed a certain way first. That made them ready to go inside God's house.

7The Levites must stand in a circle all around the king. Each man must hold his weapon. Anyone else who comes into the house must be put to death. Stay close to the king wherever he goes."

And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whosoever else cometh into the house, he shall be put to death: but be ye with the king when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.

8The Levites and all the men of Judah did just what Jehoiada told them. Each leader took his own men. He took the ones starting work on the Sabbath and the ones finishing. Jehoiada did not send any of the work groups home.

So the Levites and all Judah did according to all things that Jehoiada the priest had commanded, and took every man his men that were to come in on the sabbath, with them that were to go out on the sabbath: for Jehoiada the priest dismissed not the courses.

NoteThe priests and Levites were sorted into work groups. Each group served for a while, then went home to rest. This time Jehoiada kept every group there. That gave him many more men for the day.

9Then Jehoiada gave the army leaders the spears and shields that had belonged to King David. These had been kept in God's house.

Moreover Jehoiada the priest delivered to the captains of hundreds spears, and bucklers, and shields, that had been king David’s, which were in the house of God.

NoteThe King James says "bucklers." Those were small shields held in one hand. These weapons were very old. They had been kept safe at God's house since King David's time.

10He placed all the men in a circle around the king. Each man held his weapon. They stood near the altar and the temple, from one side to the other.

And he set all the people, every man having his weapon in his hand, from the right side of the temple to the left side of the temple, along by the altar and the temple, by the king round about.

NoteThe altar was a large stone table outside God's house. Gifts for God were burned on top of it. The temple was God's house in Jerusalem.

11Then they brought out the king's son. They put the crown on his head. They gave him the book of God's law. They made him king. Jehoiada and his sons poured oil on him to show he was chosen. Then they shouted, "Long live the king!"

Then they brought out the king’s son, and put upon him the crown, and gave him the testimony, and made him king. And Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and said, God save the king.

NoteThe King James calls the book "the testimony." It was a copy of the rules God gave his people. A new king was given it to keep and obey. Pouring oil on a man's head was how kings were chosen. It showed everyone that this man was picked to rule. The King James shout is "God save the king." It means "may the king live a long time."

12Athaliah heard the people running and cheering for the king. So she went out to them at the LORD's house.

Now when Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she came to the people into the house of the LORD:

NoteAthaliah was the boy king's own grandmother. She took the throne after his father died. She believed every one of the king's sons was gone.

13She looked and saw the king standing by his pillar at the entrance. The officers and trumpet players stood beside him. All the people were happy and blowing trumpets. Singers with instruments were leading the songs. Athaliah tore her clothes and screamed, "Treason! Treason!"

And she looked, and, behold, the king stood at his pillar at the entering in, and the princes and the trumpets by the king: and all the people of the land rejoiced, and sounded with trumpets, also the singers with instruments of musick, and such as taught to sing praise. Then Athaliah rent her clothes, and said, Treason, Treason.

NoteThe king had his own spot beside a tall stone pillar. That was where a king stood at the temple. The trumpets were long horns, blown at big moments. Tearing your clothes was how people showed shock or sadness. "Treason" means turning against your own ruler.

14Jehoiada the priest called out the army leaders. He said, "Take her out between the rows of men. Kill anyone who follows her." The priest had said she must not be killed inside the LORD's house.

Then Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains of hundreds that were set over the host, and said unto them, Have her forth of the ranges: and whoso followeth her, let him be slain with the sword. For the priest said, Slay her not in the house of the LORD.

NoteThe King James says to bring her out "of the ranges." The soldiers were standing in long straight lines. She was walked out between those lines. That way no one could jump in and help her.

15So they grabbed her. She was taken to the Horse Gate near the palace. They put her to death there.

So they laid hands on her; and when she was come to the entering of the horse gate by the king’s house, they slew her there.

NoteThe Horse Gate was a doorway where horses went in and out. It stood right beside the king's palace.