Joash Repairs the Temple
1Joash became king of Judah. It was in the seventh year of Jehu’s rule. Joash ruled in Jerusalem for 40 years. His mother’s name was Zibiah. She was from Beersheba. 2Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. Joash lived that way as long as Jehoiada the priest was teaching him. 3But the high places weren’t removed. The people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.
4Joash spoke to the priests. He said, “Collect all the money the people bring as sacred offerings to the Lord’s temple. That includes the money collected when the men who are able to serve in the army are counted. It includes the money received from people who make a special promise to the Lord. It also includes the money people bring to the temple just because they want to. 5Let each priest receive the money from one of the people in charge of the temple’s treasures. Then use all of that money to repair the temple where it needs it.”
6It was now the 23rd year of the rule of King Joash. And the priests still hadn’t repaired the temple. 7So the king sent for Jehoiada the priest and the other priests. He asked them, “Why aren’t you repairing the temple where it needs it? Don’t take any more money from the people in charge of the treasures. Instead, hand it over so the temple can be repaired.” 8The priests agreed that they wouldn’t collect any more money from the people. They also agreed that they wouldn’t repair the temple themselves.
9Jehoiada the priest got a chest. He drilled a hole in its lid. He placed the chest beside the altar for burnt offerings. The chest was on the right side as people enter the Lord’s temple. Some priests guarded the entrance. They put into the chest all the money the people brought to the temple. 10From time to time there was a large amount of money in the chest. When that happened, the royal secretary and the high priest came. They counted the money the people had brought to the temple. Then they put it into bags. 11After they added it all up, they used it to repair the temple. They gave it to the men who had been put in charge of the work. Those men used it to pay the workers. They paid the builders and those who worked with wood. 12They paid those who cut stones and those who laid them. They bought lumber and blocks of stone. So they used the money to repair the Lord’s temple. They also paid all the other costs to make the temple like new again.
13The money the people brought to the Lord’s temple wasn’t used to make silver bowls. It wasn’t used for wick cutters, sprinkling bowls or trumpets. And it wasn’t used for any other things made out of gold or silver. 14Instead, it was paid to the workers. They used it to repair the temple. 15The royal secretary and the high priest didn’t require a report from those who were in charge of the work. That’s because they were completely honest. They always paid the workers. 16Money was received from people who brought guilt offerings and sin offerings. But it wasn’t taken to the Lord’s temple. It belonged to the priests.
17About that time Hazael, the king of Aram, went up and attacked Gath. Then he captured it. After that, he turned back to attack Jerusalem. 18But Joash, the king of Judah, didn’t want to go to war. So he took all the sacred objects. They had been set apart to the Lord by the kings who had ruled over Judah before him. Those kings were Jehoshaphat, Jehoram and Ahaziah. Joash took the gifts he himself had set apart. He took all the gold that was among the temple treasures. He also took all the gold from the royal palace. He sent all those things to Hazael, the king of Aram. Then Hazael pulled his army back from Jerusalem.
19The other events of the rule of Joash are written down. Everything he did is written in the official records of the kings of Judah. 20The officials of Joash made evil plans against him. They killed him at Beth Millo. It happened on the road that goes down to Silla. 21The officials who murdered him were Jozabad and Jehozabad. Jozabad was the son of Shimeath. Jehozabad was the son of Shomer. After Joash died, he was buried in the family tomb in the City of David. Joash’s son Amaziah became the next king after him.
約阿施做猶大王
1以色列王耶戶執政第七年，約阿施登基，在耶路撒冷執政四十年。他母親叫西比亞，是別示巴人。 2在耶何耶大祭司的教導下，約阿施一生做耶和華視為正的事。 3但他沒有拆毀邱壇，人們仍在那裡獻祭燒香。
4約阿施對祭司們說：「你們要收集那些奉獻到耶和華殿的聖銀，即人口普查時收取的銀子、個人還願的銀子和自願奉獻的銀子。 5每位祭司要從奉獻的人手中收取銀子，用來修殿。」 6可是，直到約阿施執政第二十三年，祭司仍未動工。 7約阿施召來耶何耶大祭司及其他祭司，對他們說：「你們為什麼還不修殿呢？不要再向奉獻的人收銀子了，要把所收的銀子交出來修殿。」 8祭司們答應不再向民眾收錢，但也不動工修殿。
9耶何耶大祭司在耶和華殿的入口右邊的祭壇旁放了一個箱子，箱蓋上開了個洞。守門的祭司將奉獻到耶和華殿的所有銀子放進箱子裡。 10箱子裡的銀子多了，王的書記和大祭司就把銀子點好，裝在袋子裡。 11他們將秤好的銀子交給修耶和華殿的督工。督工把報酬轉交給在殿裡工作的木匠、建築工人、 12泥水匠和石匠，購買修耶和華殿用的木料和鑿好的石頭，並支付其他的修殿費用。 13獻到耶和華殿裡的銀子沒有用於製造殿裡的銀碗、蠟剪、盆、號及其他金銀器皿， 14只用於修殿。 15督工們辦事忠誠可靠，不需要跟他們清算賬目。 16贖過祭和贖罪祭的銀子沒有帶到耶和華的殿裡，而是歸給祭司。
17那時，亞蘭王哈薛攻陷了迦特，準備進攻耶路撒冷。 18猶大王約阿施把先王約沙法、約蘭、亞哈謝和他自己奉獻的聖物以及耶和華殿裡和王宮庫房裡的所有金子都送給了亞蘭王哈薛，哈薛便從耶路撒冷退兵。
19約阿施其他的事及其一切作為都記在猶大的列王史上。 20約阿施的臣僕謀反，在去悉拉途中的米羅宮殺了他。 21殺他的是示米押的兒子約撒甲和朔默的兒子約薩拔。約阿施葬在大衛城他的祖墳裡。他兒子亞瑪謝繼位。
