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2
Chronicles Chapter Twenty-four
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO 2 CHRONICLES 24
This
chapter begins with the reign of Joash king of Judah, son of Ahaziah, 2 Chronicles 24:1,
relates his concern and care to repair the temple, 2 Chronicles 24:4,
the death of Jehoiada the priest, during whose life he reigned well, but after
his death sadly apostatized, 2 Chronicles 24:15,
for which, being reproved by Zechariah, he was so wroth with him as to order
him to be stoned, 2 Chronicles 24:20,
wherefore for these evils enemies were raised up against him; he was smitten
with diseases, and his servants conspired against him and slew him, and would
not bury him among the kings, 2 Chronicles 24:23.
2 Chronicles
24:1 Joash was
seven years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem.
His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba.
YLT
1A son of seven years [is]
Joash in his reigning, and forty years he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the
name of his mother [is] Zibiah of Beer-Sheba.
Verse 1-2
Joash was seven years old when he began to reign,.... This, and
the following verse, are the same with 2 Kings 11:21. See
Gill on 2 Kings 12:1. See
Gill on 2 Kings 12:2.
2 Chronicles
24:2 2 Joash
did what was right in the sight of the Lord all the days
of Jehoiada the priest.
YLT
2And Joash doth that which
is right in the eyes of Jehovah all the days of Jehoiada the priest.
2 Chronicles
24:3 3 And
Jehoiada took two wives for him, and he had sons and daughters.
YLT
3And Jehoiada taketh for him
two wives, and he begetteth sons and daughters.
And Jehoiada took for him two wives,.... Not for himself; he
had a wife who was aunt to King Joash, and he had sons who were concerned with
him in anointing him, 2 Chronicles 22:11
and was now upwards of one hundred years of age; but for the king, when he was
at an age fit for marriage, he advised him to marry, and proposed wives to him,
whom he thought would be agreeable; for, observing what mischief was done both
in church and state through Jehoram's marrying Athaliah, he was desirous of
preventing any such disagreeable marriage; and as the young king was in all
things guided and directed by him, so he was in this; and no doubt they were
good women he pitched upon, and proposed to the king; one of them was Jehoadan,
2 Chronicles 25:1,
but the name of the other we know not:
and he begat sons and daughters; how many is not said,
nor do we read of the names of any of them, but of Amaziah who succeeded him.
2 Chronicles 24:4 4 Now it happened after this
that Joash set his heart on repairing the house of the Lord.
YLT
4And it cometh to pass after
this, it hath been with the heart of Joash to renew the house of Jehovah,
And it came to pass after this,.... After his marriage,
when he was about twenty or twenty one years of age, perhaps:
that Joash was minded to repair the house of the Lord; which in some
places might be fallen to decay, having been built one hundred and fifty years
or more, and in others defaced by Athaliah, and needed ornamenting, see 2 Kings 12:4.
2 Chronicles 24:5 5 Then he gathered the
priests and the Levites, and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah, and
gather from all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year,
and see that you do it quickly.” However the Levites did not do it quickly.
YLT
5and he gathereth the
priests and the Levites, and saith to them, `Go out to the cities of Judah, and
gather from all Israel money to strengthen the house of your God sufficiently
year by year, and ye, ye do haste to the matter;' and the Levites have not
hasted.
And he gathered together the priests and Levites,.... To
communicate his mind unto, and give them a charge and instructions:
and said unto them, go out unto the cities of Judah, and gather of
all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year; what money he
means is more fully explained in 2 Kings 12:4,
and see that ye haste the matter; for he was very desirous
of having this work accomplished, it being the place of the worship of God, and
where he had been preserved in his infancy:
howbeit, the Levites hastened it not; either
through negligence in them to collect the money, or backwardness in the people
to give, or through an avaricious disposition to keep it, and use it for
themselves; so that it was delayed unto the twenty third year of his reign 2 Kings 12:6.
2 Chronicles 24:6 6 So the king called
Jehoiada the chief priest, and said to him, “Why have you not required
the Levites to bring in from Judah and from Jerusalem the collection, according
to the commandment of Moses the servant of the Lord and of the
assembly of Israel, for the tabernacle of witness?”
YLT
6And the king calleth for
Jehoiada the head, and saith to him, `Wherefore hast thou not required of the
Levites to bring in out of Judah and out of Jerusalem the tribute of Moses,
servant of Jehovah, and of the assembly of Israel, for the tent of the
testimony?
And the king called for Jehoiada the chief,.... Who was
either the high priest, or the head of his course, or, however, the chief of
the priests and Levites concerned in this affair, and, indeed, was the chief or
prime minister of state:
and said unto him, why hast thou not required of the Levites to
bring in out of Judah, and out of Jerusalem, the collection; the money to
repair the house they were ordered to collect, 2 Chronicles 25:6
according to the commandment
of Moses the servant of the Lord and of the congregation of Israel,
for the tabernacle of witness? for the repair of it, such as Moses
required, and the people used to pay, referring to the half shekel; or to a
freewill offering of the people, Moses enjoined or directed to.
2 Chronicles 24:7 7 For the sons of Athaliah,
that wicked woman, had broken into the house of God, and had also presented all
the dedicated things of the house of the Lord to the Baals.
YLT
7for sons of Athaliah, the
wicked one, have broken up the house of God, and also, all the holy things of
the house of Jehovah they have prepared for Baalim.'
For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman,.... Not
Ahaziah and his brethren, in the lifetime of Jehoram, but sons of Athaliah by
another man, as Kimchi suggests:
had broken up the house of God; not that they had made
ruptures in it, or broke down the walls of it, but had defaced it by taking off
the gold and silver upon it:
and also all the dedicated things of the house of the Lord did
they bestow upon Baalim; not strictly all, but a great many of them, as this word in many
instances is used, as Kimchi observes, and with them furnished, beautified, and
adorned the temple of Baal.
2 Chronicles 24:8 8 Then at the king’s command
they made a chest, and set it outside at the gate of the house of the Lord.
YLT
8And the king speaketh, and
they make one chest, and put it at the gate of the house of Jehovah without,
And at the king's commandment they made a chest,.... See Gill
on 2 Kings 12:9.
2 Chronicles 24:9 9 And they made a
proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem to bring to the Lord the collection
that Moses the servant of God had imposed on Israel in the
wilderness.
YLT
9and give an intimation in Judah
and in Jerusalem to bring in to Jehovah the tribute of Moses, servant of God,
[laid] on Israel in the wilderness.
And they made a proclamation through Judah and Jerusalem,.... By
heralds appointed for the purpose:
to bring in to the Lord; into the house of the
Lord, and for the reparation of it; and so for his service, honour, and glory:
the collection that Moses the servant of the Lord laid upon Israel
in the wilderness; not to bring in the tabernacle of Moses, as the Targum here and
in 2 Chronicles 24:6,
but such a voluntary gift as Moses moved the children of Israel to bring, when
in the wilderness, for the service of the tabernacle.
2 Chronicles 24:10 10 Then all the leaders and
all the people rejoiced, brought their contributions, and put them into
the chest until all had given.
YLT
10And all the heads, and all
the people rejoice, and they bring in, and cast into the chest, unto
completion.
And all the princes and all the people rejoiced,.... When they
heard the proclamation, and understood for what use the money was to be given,
and in what manner; all was agreeable and pleasing to them:
and brought in, and cast into the chest; through the
hole that was in the lid of it, 2 Kings 12:9,
until they had made an end: everyone had given as
much as he could, or thought fit to give.
2 Chronicles 24:11 11 So it was, at that time,
when the chest was brought to the king’s official by the hand of the Levites,
and when they saw that there was much money, that the king’s scribe and
the high priest’s officer came and emptied the chest, and took it and returned
it to its place. Thus they did day by day, and gathered money in abundance.
YLT
11And it cometh to pass, at
the time one bringeth in the chest for the inspection of the king by the hand
of the Levites, and at their seeing that the money [is] abundant, that a scribe
of the king hath come in, and an officer of the head-priest, and they empty the
chest, and take it up and turn it back unto its place; thus they have done day
by day, and gather money in abundance.
Now it came to pass, that at what time the chest was brought unto
the king's office by the hand of the Levites,.... The place where his
officer or officers met, appointed for this service; very probably in one of
the chambers of the temple,
and when they saw that there was much money: see 2 Kings 12:10,
the king's scribe; or secretary:
and the high priest's officer; his "sagan",
or deputy priest:
came and emptied the chest; poured out the money, and
told it, and put it up in bags, 2 Kings 12:10 and
took it, and carried it to its place again, 2 Chronicles 24:8,
by the hands of the Levites that brought it:
and thus they did day by day; as often as the chest
was full, or they perceived there was much in it:
and gathered money in abundance; enough to repair the
house, ornament it, and furnish it with vessels that were wanting.
2 Chronicles 24:12 12 The king and Jehoiada gave
it to those who did the work of the service of the house of the Lord; and they
hired masons and carpenters to repair the house of the Lord, and also
those who worked in iron and bronze to restore the house of the Lord.
YLT
12And the king and Jehoiada
give it unto the doers of the work of the service of the house of Jehovah, and
they are hiring hewers and artificers to renew the house of Jehovah, and also
-- to artificers in iron and brass to strengthen the house of Jehovah.
And the king and Jehoiada gave it to such as did the work of the
service of the house of the Lord,.... That is, they gave
it to those who were overseers of them, to pay them with it, 2 Kings 12:11.
and hired masons and carpenters to repair the house of the Lord see 2 Kings 12:12.
and also such as wrought iron and brass to mend the house of the
Lord; where it required any work of that kind.
2 Chronicles 24:13 13 So the workmen labored,
and the work was completed by them; they restored the house of God to its
original condition and reinforced it.
YLT
13And those doing the
business work, and there goeth up lengthening to the work by their hand, and
they establish the house of God, by its proper measure, and strengthen it.
So the workmen wrought,.... The masons,
carpenters, blacksmiths, and brasiers:
and the work was perfected by them; the business of repairs
was completely finished:
and they set the house of God in his state; as it was at
first:
and strengthened it; so that it seemed as
firm and stable as when first built.
2 Chronicles 24:14 14 When they had finished,
they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada; they made from
it articles for the house of the Lord, articles for serving and
offering, spoons and vessels of gold and silver. And they offered burnt
offerings in the house of the Lord continually all the days
of Jehoiada.
YLT
14And at their completing
[it], they have brought in before the king and Jehoiada the rest of the money,
and they make it vessels for the house of Jehovah, vessels of serving, and of
offering up, and spoons, even vessels of gold and silver; and they are causing
burnt-offerings to ascend in the house of Jehovah continually, all the days of
Jehoiada.
And when they had finished it,.... The repairs of the
house, all that were necessary:
they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada: that is, the
overseers, when they had paid the workmen, brought what was left of the money
collected to the king and the priest, to dispose of as they should think fit:
whereof were made vessels for the house of the Lord; in the room
of such that Athaliah and her sons had taken away, and converted to the use of
Baal; for though it is said, 2 Kings 12:13, that
none were made of this money, the meaning is, that none were made of it until
the work was finished, and the workmen paid:
even vessels to minister and offer withal; which,
according to Jarchi, were pestles and mortars to beat spices with; but Kimchi
thinks they were small vessels with which they drew wine out of the bin for
drink offerings: and spoons and vessels of gold and silver: see 2 Kings 12:13,
and they offered burnt offerings in the house of the Lord
continually all the days of Jehoiada; the daily sacrifice,
morning and evening.
2 Chronicles 24:15 15 But Jehoiada grew old and
was full of days, and he died; he was one hundred and thirty years old
when he died.
YLT
15And Jehoiada is aged and
satisfied with days, and dieth -- a son of a hundred and thirty years in his
death,
But Jehoiada waxed old, and was full of days when he died,.... A very
old man; few at this time arrived to such an age; he was a rare instance:
One hundred and thirty years old was he when he died; the oldest
man we read of from the times of Moses, and older than he by ten years.
2 Chronicles 24:16 16 And they buried him in the
City of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, both toward
God and His house.
YLT
16and they bury him in the
city of David, with the kings, for he hath done good in Israel, and with God,
and his house.
And they buried him in the city of David among the kings,.... In honour
to him, he having been the preserver of the king, and of the kingdom, and being
by marriage a relation of the present king, uncle to him:
because he had done good in Israel; in that part of it which
belonged to the kingdom of the house of David:
both towards God, and towards his house; both for the
restoring the pure worship of God, and the repairs of the temple.
2 Chronicles 24:17 17 Now after the death of
Jehoiada the leaders of Judah came and bowed down to the king. And the king
listened to them.
YLT
17And after the death of
Jehoiada come in have heads of Judah, and bow themselves to the king; then hath
the king hearkened unto them,
Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah,.... Who had
been secretly inclined to idolatry, but durst not discover it during the life
of Jehoiada; whose influence at court was too great for them to counterwork,
but when dead they came to court:
and made obeisance to the king; bowed in a very lowly
manner, fawned upon him, and flattered him. Some Jewish writers, as Kimchi
observes, understand this of religious adoration, that they made a god of him,
and worshipped him, pretending, as a foundation for it, his being hid six months
in the temple, and preserved; but it designs no more than civil worship and
homage:
then the king hearkened unto them; coursing with him about
divine worship, which the business they came about; desiring that they might,
not be obliged to come to Jerusalem to worship, but might make use of the high
places, and by that means worship what idol they pleased, which he granted to
them; the Targum is,"he received their idols from them.'
2 Chronicles 24:18 18 Therefore they left the
house of the Lord
God of their fathers, and served wooden images and idols; and wrath came upon
Judah and Jerusalem because of their trespass.
YLT
18and they forsake the house
of Jehovah, God of their fathers, and serve the shrines and the idols, and
there is wrath upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their guilt.
And they left the house of the Lord God of their fathers,.... Came no
more to the temple at Jerusalem, forsook the worship and service of it:
and served groves and idols; worshipped idols in
groves, which were upon high places:
and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their trespass: their
idolatry, and particularly on these princes, the Syrian army coming against
them, and destroying them, 2 Chronicles 24:23.
2 Chronicles 24:19 19 Yet He sent prophets to
them, to bring them back to the Lord; and they testified
against them, but they would not listen.
YLT
19And He sendeth among them
prophets, to bring them back unto Jehovah, and they testify against them, and
they have not given ear;
Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again unto the Lord,.... To
reprove them for their sin, to warn them of their danger, to exhort them to
their duty, and endeavour to restore them, and reduce them to the obedience and
worship, of God; such was his clemency, goodness, and condescension to them,
before he executed his wrath upon them:
and they testified against them; against their sins, and
declared what would befall them, and called heaven and earth to witness for God
and against them:
but they would not give ear: to their reproofs,
admonitions, cautions, and exhortations, but went on in their own ways.
2 Chronicles 24:20 20 Then the Spirit of God
came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, who stood above the people,
and said to them, “Thus says God: ‘Why do you transgress the commandments of
the Lord,
so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the Lord, He also has
forsaken you.’”
YLT
20and the Spirit of God hath
clothed Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest, and he standeth over-against the
people, and saith to them, `Thus said God, Why are ye transgressing the
commands of Jehovah, and prosper not? because ye have forsaken Jehovah -- He
doth forsake you.'
And the Spirit of the Lord came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada
the priest,.... The spirit of prophecy, as the Targum; he was moved and
influenced by it to speak what is after related:
which stood above the people; in a desk, or sort of
pulpit, in which the priests stood when they taught the people, that they might
be the better heard, like that which Ezra used, Nehemiah 8:4.
and said unto them, thus saith God; being moved and directed
by his Spirit, he spake in his name:
why transgress ye the command of the Lord, that ye cannot prosper? by committing
idolatry, than which nothing could more hinder prosperity, both in things
spiritual and temporal, in soul and body:
because ye have forsaken the Lord, he hath also forsaken you; because they
had forsaken the worship of God, as the Targum, God had forsaken them, and was
about to give them up into the hand of their enemies.
2 Chronicles 24:21 21 So they conspired against
him, and at the command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of
the house of the Lord.
YLT
21And they conspire against
him, and stone him with stones by the command of the king, in the court of the
house of Jehovah,
And they conspired against him,.... Consulted together
to take away his life, and got the order of the king to do it:
and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the
court of the house of the Lord; where he had stood and reproved them; this
they did before he went out, while in the temple; and if he is the same
Zechariah, as some think, our Lord speaks of, he was slain between the temple
porch and the altar, Matthew 23:35; see
Gill on Matthew 23:35.
2 Chronicles 24:22 22 Thus Joash the king did
not remember the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but killed
his son; and as he died, he said, “The Lord look on it, and
repay!”
YLT
22and Joash the king hath not
remembered the kindness that Jehoiada his father did with him, and slayeth his
son, and in his death he said, `Jehovah doth see, and require.'
Thus Joash the king remembered not the kindness which Jehoiada his
father had done to him,.... In preserving him in his infancy, and nourishing him; in
settling him on the throne, and assisting him with his advice and counsel:
but slew his son; who also assisted at his coronation, and
with his father and brethren anointed him king, as is probable, 2 Chronicles 23:11,
and when he died, he said, the Lord look upon it, and requite it; meaning his
blood; this he said, not from a private spirit of revenge, but with a view to
the glory of divine justice, and which he delivered not as a wish, or by way of
imprecation, that so it might be, but as a prophecy that so it would be.
2 Chronicles 24:23 23 So it happened in the
spring of the year that the army of Syria came up against him; and they
came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the leaders of the people from
among the people, and sent all their spoil to the king of Damascus.
YLT
23And it cometh to pass, at
the turn of the year, come up hath the force of Aram against him, and they come
in unto Judah and Jerusalem, and destroy all the heads of the people from the
people, and all their spoil they have sent to the king of Damascus,
And it came to pass at the end of the year,.... After the
death of Zechariah; so soon had his prophecy its accomplishment:
that the host of Syria came up against him; against
Joash, king of Judah, under Hazael king of Syria, or however sent by him; for
some think this is a different expedition from that in 2 Kings 12:17
though others take it to be the same:
and they came to Judah and Jerusalem; not only came
into the land of Judah, but as far as Jerusalem, the forces of Joash not being
able to stop them:
and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people; the
idolatrous princes of Judah, 2 Chronicles 24:17,
which is very remarkable that they should be distinguished from the people in
their destruction, who had been the chief cause of the wrath of God coming upon
them:
and sent all the spoil of them unto the king of Damascus; all the
riches that were taken from them were sent to the king of Syria at Damascus;
this looks as if Hazael was not with this army.
2 Chronicles 24:24 24 For the army of the Syrians
came with a small company of men; but the Lord delivered a very great
army into their hand, because they had forsaken the Lord God of their
fathers. So they executed judgment against Joash.
YLT
24for with few men have the
force of Aram come in, and Jehovah hath given into their hand a mighty force
for multitude, because they have forsaken Jehovah, God of their fathers; and
with Joash they have executed judgments.
For the army of the Syrians came with a small company of men,.... It
consisted but of few:
and the Lord delivered a very great host into their hand; which the
king of Judah and his princes had got together to oppose them:
because they had forsaken the Lord God of their fathers; therefore the
Lord forsook them, and gave them up into the hand of their enemies:
so they executed judgment against Joash; were the
instruments God made use of to execute his vengeance on him for his idolatry
and murder.
2 Chronicles 24:25 25 And when they had
withdrawn from him (for they left him severely wounded), his own servants
conspired against him because of the blood of the sons[a] of
Jehoiada the priest, and killed him on his bed. So he died. And they buried him
in the City of David, but they did not bury him in the tombs of the kings.
YLT
25And in their going from him
-- for they left him with many diseases -- his servants themselves have
conspired against him, for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and
slay him on his bed, and he dieth; and they bury him in the city of David, and
have not buried him in the graves of the kings.
And when they were departed from him,.... Having
got what wealth and spoil they could:
for they left him in great diseases; through the wounds they
gave him, and the distress they brought him into:
his own servants conspired against him, for the blood of the sons
of Jehoiada the priest; for perhaps more than one was slain at the same time; the rest
vindicating the cause of their brother, shared the same fate; or the plural is
put for the singular:
and slew him on his bed; in the house of Millo,
where he lay ill of his wounds, and sick of his diseases, and could not defend
himself:
and he died: of the wounds his servants gave him:
and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not
in the sepulchres of the kings; see 2 Kings 12:21.
2 Chronicles 24:26 26 These are the ones who
conspired against him: Zabad[b] the son of
Shimeath the Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith[c] the
Moabitess.
YLT
26And these [are] those
conspiring against him, Zabad son of Shimeath the Ammonitess, and Jehozabad son
of Shimrith the Moabitess.
And these are they that conspired against him, Zabad the son of
Shimeah an Ammonitess,.... Called Jozachar, the son of Shimeah, 2 Kings 12:21,
and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith a Moabitess; called in the
same place the son of Shomer.
2 Chronicles 24:27 27 Now concerning his
sons, and the many oracles about him, and the repairing of the house of God,
indeed they are written in the annals of the book of the kings. Then
Amaziah his son reigned in his place.
YLT
27As to his sons, and the
greatness of the burden upon him, and the foundation of the house of God, lo,
they are written on the `Inquiry' of the book of the Kings; and reign doth
Amaziah his son in his stead.
Now concerning his sons,.... The sons of Joash;
how many they were, and what their names:
and the greatness of the burdens laid upon him; which some
understand of the hard and heavy prophecies of the Lord against him; and others
of the heavy taxes and tribute imposed on him by the king of Syria; and others
of the collection for the repairs of the temple, 2 Chronicles 24:6,
where the word used signifies a burden; and it follows:
and the repairing of the house of the Lord; the whole
history of that:
behold, they are written in the story of the book of the kings; not in the
canonical book so called, but in the history, commentaries, or annals of the
kings of Judah now lost:
and Amaziah his son reigned in his stead; see 2 Kings 12:21.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)