2 Chronicles 24 Joash began to rule when he was seven years old. He ruled for forty years in Jerusalem. His mother was Zibiah from Beersheba.

NSB⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ Joash began to rule when he was seven years old. He ruled for forty years in Jerusalem. His mother was Zibiah from Beersheba. ² Joash did what was right in the sight of Jehovah, as long as the priest Jehoiada lived. ³ Jehoiada procured two wives for Joash and he had sons and daughters. ⁴ Joash wanted to renovate Jehovah’s Temple. ⁵ He gathered the priests and the Levites and said to them: »Go to the cities of Judah, and collect money throughout Israel to repair the Temple of your God every year. Do it immediately!« But the Levites did not do it immediately. ⁶ The king called for the chief priest Jehoiada and asked him: »Why have you not required the Levites to bring the contributions from Judah and Jerusalem? Jehovah’s servant Moses and the assembly required Israel to give contributions for the use of the Tent of Testimony of God’s promise.« ⁷ The sons of that wicked woman Athaliah had broken into God’s Temple and used all the holy things of Jehovah’s Temple to worship other gods, the Baals. ⁸ The king issued an order. They made a box and placed it outside the gate of Jehovah’s Temple. ⁹ They issued a proclamation in Judah and Jerusalem that the contributions should be brought to Jehovah. Moses required Israel to make contributions while they were in the desert. ¹⁰ All the officials and all the people were filled with joy. They brought money and dropped it into the box until it was full. ¹¹ When the Levites brought the box to the king’s officers and they saw a lot of money. The king’s scribe and the chief priest’s officer would empty the box and put it back in its place. They would do this every day. They collected a lot of money. ¹² The king and Jehoiada gave the money to the foremen who were working on Jehovah’s Temple. They hired masons and carpenters to renovate Jehovah’s Temple. They also hired men who worked with iron and bronze to repair Jehovah’s Temple. ¹³ The men worked and the project progressed under the foremen’s guidance. They restored God’s Temple to its proper condition and reinforced it. ¹⁴ When the repairs were finished, the remaining gold and silver was given to the king and Jehoiada. They used it to have bowls and other utensils made for the Temple. As long as Jehoiada was alive, sacrifices were offered regularly at the Temple. ¹⁵ He died at the very old age of one hundred thirty years. ¹⁶ He was buried in the royal tombs in Jerusalem. This was because he had done so much good for the people of Israel, for God, and for the Temple. ¹⁷ After the death of Jehoiada the priest, the leaders of Judah went to Joash and talked him into doing what they wanted. ¹⁸ The people of Judah stopped worshiping in the Temple of Jehovah God. They started worshiping idols and the symbols of the goddess Asherah. These sinful things made Jehovah God angry with the people of Judah and Jerusalem, ¹⁹ However he still sent prophets who warned them to turn back to him. The people refused to listen. ²⁰ God’s Spirit spoke to Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. Zechariah told everyone that God was saying: »Why are you disobeying me and my Laws? This will only bring punishment! You have deserted me, so now I will desert you.« ²¹ They plotted against Zechariah. Then they followed the king’s order and stoned him to death in the courtyard of Jehovah’s Temple. ²² King Joash forgot that Zechariah’s father had always been a loyal friend. So when the people of Judah plotted to kill Zechariah, Joash joined them and gave orders for them to stone him to death in the courtyard of the Temple. As Zechariah was dying, he said: »I pray that Jehovah will see this and punish all of you.« ²³ The Aramean army attacked Joash at year’s end. They came to Judah and Jerusalem and destroyed all the people’s leaders. The Arameans sent all the loot they took from Judah and Jerusalem to the king of Damascus. ²⁴ The Aramean army came with a small number of men. Jehovah handed Joash’s large army over to them because Joash’s soldiers had abandoned Jehovah the God of their ancestors. So the Arameans carried out Jehovah’s judgment on Joash. ²⁵ The Arameans withdrew. They left him suffering from many wounds. His own officials plotted against him for murdering the son of the priest Jehoiada. They killed Joash in his bed and buried him in the City of David. But they did not bury him in the tombs of the kings. ²⁶ These were the men who conspired against him: Zabad, son of an Ammonite woman named Shimeath, and Jehozabad, son of a Moabite woman named Shimrith. ²⁷ The record about his sons, the many divine revelations against him, and the rebuilding of God’s Temple is in the notes made in the Book of the Kings. His son Amaziah succeeded him as king.