SECOND CHRONICLES

 

2 Chronicles Chapter 23

1 ¶ In the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened himself, and made a covenant with the captains of hundreds, with 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.

2 And they went around Judah, and gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah, and the chief of the fathers of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.

3 And the entire congregation made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And Jehoiada said to them, Behold, the king’s son shall reign, as the LORD has said of the sons of David.

4 This is what you must do; A third of you priests and Levites, who come in on the sabbath, must be on guard at the doors;

5 And a another third must be at the king’s house; and a third at the foundation gate: and all the people must be in the courts of the LORD’s temple.

6 But let no one enter the house of the LORD, except the priests, and those of the Levites who serve; they shall go in, for they are holy: but all other people should follow the ordinance of the LORD.

7 And the Levites shall form a circle around the king, each with his weapons in his hand; and anyone else who enters the temple, must be put to death: but stay with the king when he comes in, and when he goes out.

8 So the Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest had commanded, and each took his men, those who were coming on duty on the sabbath, and those who were to go off duty on the sabbath: for Jehoiada the priest did not dismiss the outgoing divisions.

9 Moreover Jehoiada the priest gave king David’s spears, bucklers, and shields, that were in the house of God, to the captains of hundreds.

10 And he stationed all the troops, each man having his weapon in his hand, from the right side of the temple to the left side of the temple, and by the altar and that part of the temple where the king was.

11 Then they brought out the king’s son, and put the crown on him, and gave him the law, and made him king. And Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and shouted, Long live the king.

12 ¶ Now when Athaliah heard the people running and praising the king, she went into the house of the LORD to the people:

13 And she looked, and saw the king standing by his pillar at the entrance, with the captains and the trumpeters by him: and all the people of the land rejoicing, and sounding the trumpets, also the singers with instruments of music, and those who led in singing praise. Then Athaliah tore her clothes, and shouted, Treason, Treason.

14 Then Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains of hundreds that were over the army, and said to them, Bring her out between the ranks: and let anyone who follows her be slain with the sword. The priest had said, Do not kill her in the house of the LORD.

15 So they arrested her; and as she entered the palace, by the horse gate, they slew her there.

16 And Jehoiada made a covenant binding him, the king, and all the people, that they should be the LORD’S people.

17 Then the people all went to the house of Baal, and broke it down, and broke its altars and its images to pieces, and executed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars.

18 Jehoiada also appointed men to take charge of the house of the LORD under the direction of the Levitical priests, whom David had distributed in the house of the LORD, to offer the burnt offerings of the LORD, as written in the law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, as David had directed.

19 And he stationed gatekeepers at the gates of the house of the LORD, so that no one who was in any way unclean should enter.

20 And he took the captains of hundreds, and the nobles, and the governors of the people, and all the people of the land, and brought the king down from the house of the LORD: and they entered the palace through the upper gate, and set the king on the throne of the kingdom.

21 And all the people of the land rejoiced: and the city was quiet, after they had executed Athaliah with the sword.