The Bible, Douay-Rheims Part 263

23:20. And he took the captains of hundreds, and the most valiant men, and the chiefs of the people, and all the people of the land, and they brought down the king from the house of the Lord, and brought him through the upper gate into the king's house, and set him on the royal throne.

23:21. And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet: but Athalia was slain with the sword.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 24

Joas reigneth well all the days of Joiada: afterwards falleth into idolatry and causeth Zacharias to be slain. He is slain himself by his servants.

24:1. Joas was seven years old when he began to reign: and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Sebia of Bersabee.

24:2. And he did that which is good before the Lord all the days of Joiada the priest.

24:3. And Joiada took for him two wives, by whom he had sons and daughters.

24:4. After this Joas had a mind to repair the house of the Lord.

24:5. And he a.s.sembled the priests, and the Levites, and said to them: Go out to the cities of Juda, and gather of all Israel money to repair the temple of your G.o.d, from year to year: and do this with speed: but the Levites were negligent.

24:6. And the king called Joiada the chief, and said to him: Why hast thou not taken care to oblige the Levites to bring in out of Juda and Jerusalem the money that was appointed by Moses the servant of the Lord for all the mult.i.tude of Israel to bring into the tabernacle of the testimony?

24:7. For that wicked woman Athalia, and her children have destroyed the house of G.o.d, and adorned the temple of Baal with all the things that had been dedicated in the temple of the Lord.

24:8. And the king commanded, and they made a chest: and set it by the gate of the house of the Lord on the outside.

24:9. And they made a proclamation in Juda and Jerusalem, that every man should bring to the Lord the money which Moses the servant of G.o.d appointed for all Israel, in the desert.

24:10. And all the princes, and all the people rejoiced: and going in they contributed and cast so much into the chest of the Lord, that it was filled.

24:11. And when it was time to bring the chest before the king by the hands of the Levites, (for they saw there was much money,) the king's scribe, and he whom the high priest had appointed went in: and they poured out the money that was in the chest: and they carried back the chest to its place: and thus they did from day to day, and there was gathered an immense sum of money.

24:12. And the king and Joiada gave it to those who were over the works of the house of the Lord: but they hired with it stonecutters, and artificers of every kind of work to repair the house of the Lord: and such as wrought in iron and bra.s.s, to uphold what began to be falling.

24:13. And the workmen were diligent, and the breach of the walls was closed up by their hands, and they set up the house of the Lord in its former state, and made it stand firm.

24:14. And when they had finished all the works, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Joiada: and with it were made vessels for the temple for the ministry, and for holocausts and bowls, and other vessels of gold and silver: and holocausts were offered in the house of the Lord continually all the days of Joiada.

24:15. But Joiada grew old and was full of days, and died when he was a hundred and thirty years old.

24:16. And they buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good to Israel, and to his house.

24:17. And after the death of Joiada, the princes of Juda went in, and wors.h.i.+pped the king: and he was soothed by their services and hearkened to them.

24:18. And they forsook the temple of the Lord the G.o.d of their fathers, and served groves and idols, and wrath came upon Juda and Jerusalem for this sin.

24:19. And he sent prophets to them to bring them back to the Lord, and they would not give ear when they testified against them.

24:20. The spirit of G.o.d then came upon Zacharias the son of Joiada the priest, and he stood in the sight of the people, and said to them: Thus saith the Lord G.o.d: Why transgress you the commandment of the Lord which will not be for your good, and have forsaken the Lord, to make him forsake you?

24:21. And they gathered themselves together against him, and stoned him at the king's commandment in the court of the house of the Lord.

24:22. And king Joas did not remember the kindness that Joiada his father had done to him, but killed his son. And when he died, he said: The Lord see, and require it.

24:23. And when a year was come about, the army of Syria came up against him: and they came to Juda and Jerusalem, and killed all the princes of the people, and they sent all the spoils to the king of Damascus.

24:24. And whereas there came a very small number of the Syrians, the Lord delivered into their hands an infinite mult.i.tude, because they had forsaken the Lord the G.o.d of their fathers: and on Joas they executed shameful judgments.

24:25. And departing they left him in great diseases: and his servants rose up against him, for revenge of the blood of the son of Joiada the priest, and they slew him in his bed, and he died: and they buried him in the city of David, but not in the sepulchres of the kings.

24:26. Now the men that conspired against him were Zabad the son of Semmaath an Ammonitess, and Jozabad the son of Semarith a Moabitess.

24:27. And concerning his sons, and the sum of money which was gathered under him, and the repairing the house of G.o.d, they are written more diligently in the book of kings: and Amasias his son reigned in his stead.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 25

Amasias' reign: he beginneth well, but endeth ill: he is overthrown by Joas, and slain by his people.

25:1. Amasias was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned nine and twenty years in Jerusalem, the name of his mother was Joadan of Jerusalem.

25:2. And he did what was good in the sight of the Lord: but yet not with a perfect heart.

25:3. And when he saw himself strengthened in his kingdom, he put to death the servants that had slain the king his father.

25:4. But he slew not their children, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, where the Lord commanded, saying: The fathers shall not be slain for the children, nor the children for their fathers, but every man shall die for his own sin.

25:5. Amasias therefore gathered Juda together, and appointed them by families, and captains of thousands and of hundreds in all Juda, and Benjamin: and he numbered them from twenty years old and upwards, and found three hundred thousand young men that could go out to battle, and could hold the spear and s.h.i.+eld.

25:6. He hired also of Israel a hundred thousand valiant men, for a hundred talents of silver.

25:7. But a man of G.o.d came to him, and said: O king, let not the army of Israel go out with thee, for the Lord is not with Israel, and all the children of Ephraim:

25:8. And if thou think that battles consist in the strength of the army, G.o.d will make thee to be overcome by the enemies: for it belongeth to G.o.d both to help, and to put to flight.

25:9. And Amasias said to the man of G.o.d: What will then become of the hundred talents which I have given to the soldiers of Israel? and the man of G.o.d answered him: The Lord is rich enough to be able to give thee much more than this.

25:10. Then Amasias separated the army, that came to him out of Ephraim, to go home again: but they being much enraged against Juda, returned to their own country.

25:11. And Amasias taking courage led forth his people, and went to the vale of saltpits, and slew of the children of Seir ten thousand.

25:12. And other ten thousand men the sons of Juda took, and brought to the steep of a certain rock, and cast them down headlong from the top, and they all were broken to pieces.

25:13. But that army which Amasias had sent back, that they should not go with him to battle, spread themselves among the cities of Juda, from Samaria to Beth-horon, and having killed three thousand took away much spoil.

25:14. But Amasias after he had slain the Edomites, set up the G.o.ds of the children of Seir, which he had brought thence, to be his G.o.ds, and adored them, and burnt incense to them.

25:15. Wherefore the Lord being angry against Amasias, sent a prophet to him, to say to him: Why hast thou adored G.o.ds that have not delivered their own people out of thy hand?

25:16. And when he spoke these things, he answered him: Art thou the king's counsellor? be quiet, lest I kill thee. And the prophet departing, said: I know that G.o.d is minded to kill thee, because thou hast done this evil, and moreover hast not hearkened to my counsel.

25:17. Then Amasias king of Juda taking very bad counsel, sent to Joas the son of Joachaz the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying: Come, let us see one another.