King Joash of Judah
(2 Kings 12.1-16)1 Joash became king of Judah at the age of seven, and he ruled in Jerusalem for forty years. His mother was Zibiah from the city of Beersheba. 2 He did what was pleasing to the Lord as long as Jehoiada the priest was alive. 3 Jehoiada chose two wives for King Joash, and they bore him sons and daughters.
4 After he had been king for a while, Joash decided to have the Temple repaired. 5 He ordered the priests and the Levites to go to the cities of Judah and collect from all the people enough money to make the annual repairs on the Temple. He told them to act promptly, but the Levites delayed, 6 so he called in Jehoiada, their leader, and demanded, “Why haven't you seen to it that the Levites collect from Judah and Jerusalem the tax which Moses, the servant of the Lord, required the people to pay for support of the Tent of the Lord's presence?”
( 7 The followers of Athaliah, that corrupt woman, had damaged the Temple and had used many of the sacred objects in the worship of Baal.)
8 The king ordered the Levites to make a box for contributions and to place it at the Temple gate. 9 They sent word throughout Jerusalem and Judah for everyone to bring to the Lord the tax which Moses, God's servant, had first collected in the wilderness. 10 This pleased the people and their leaders, and they brought their tax money and filled the box with it. 11 Every day the Levites would take the box to the royal official who was in charge of it. Whenever it was full, the royal secretary and the High Priest's representative would take the money out and return the box to its place. And so they collected a large sum of money.
12 The king and Jehoiada would give the money to those who were in charge of repairing the Temple, and they hired stonemasons, carpenters, and metalworkers to make the repairs. 13 All of them worked hard, and they restored the Temple to its original condition, as solid as ever. 14 When the repairs were finished, the remaining gold and silver was given to the king and Jehoiada, who used it to have bowls and other utensils made for the Temple.
Jehoiada's Policies Are Reversed
As long as Jehoiada was alive, sacrifices were offered regularly at the Temple. 15 After reaching the very old age of a hundred and thirty, he died. 16 They buried him in the royal tombs in David's City in recognition of the service he had done for the people of Israel, for God, and for the Temple.
17 But once Jehoiada was dead, the leaders of Judah persuaded King Joash to listen to them instead. 18 And so the people stopped worshiping in the Temple of the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and began to worship idols and the images of the goddess Asherah. Their guilt for these sins brought the Lord's anger on Judah and Jerusalem. 19 The Lord sent prophets to warn them to return to him, but the people refused to listen. 20 Then the spirit of God took control of Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood where the people could see him and called out, “The Lord God asks why you have disobeyed his commands and are bringing disaster on yourselves! You abandoned him, so he has abandoned you!” 21 King Joash joined in a conspiracy against Zechariah, and on the king's orders the people stoned Zechariah in the Temple courtyard. 22 The king forgot about the loyal service that Zechariah's father Jehoiada had given him, and he had Zechariah killed. As Zechariah was dying, he called out, “May the Lord see what you are doing and punish you!”
The End of Joash's Reign
23 When autumn came that year, the Syrian army attacked Judah and Jerusalem, killed all the leaders, and took large amounts of loot back to Damascus. 24 The Syrian army was small, but the Lord let them defeat a much larger Judean army because the people had abandoned him, the Lord God of their ancestors. In this way King Joash was punished. 25 He was severely wounded, and when the enemy withdrew, two of his officials plotted against him and killed him in his bed to avenge the murder of the son of Jehoiada the priest. He was buried in David's City, but not in the royal tombs. ( 26 Those who plotted against him were Zabad, the son of an Ammonite woman named Shimeath, and Jehozabad, the son of a Moabite woman named Shimrith.) 27 The Commentary on the Book of Kings contains the stories of the sons of Joash, the prophecies spoken against him, and the record of how he rebuilt the Temple. His son Amaziah succeeded him as king.
Epangelo laJoas
1 Omido daJoas da li heyali eshi a ninga ohamba, nokwa pangela omido omilongo nhee muJerusalem. Nedina laina la li Sibja womuBerseba. 2 Ndele Joas okwa ninga osho sha wapalela moipafi yOmwene momafiku aeshe omupristeli Jehoiada. 3 Ndele Jehoiada okwe mu kongela ovalikadi vavali, nokwa dala ovana ovamati noukadona.
4 Konima yaashi Joas okwa diladila okuwapeka vali ongulu yOmwene. 5 Onghee hano a ongela ovapristeli nOvalevi ndele ta ti kuvo: “Indeni koilando yomuJuda ndele ongeleni oimaliwa kOvaisraeli aveshe, ongulu yaKalunga keni i wapekwe komudo nomudo. Noshilonga eshi shi endelelifeni!” Ndelenee Ovalevi inave shi endelelifa. 6 Opo nee ohamba ya ifana omupristeli omukulunhu Jehoiada ndele tai ti kuye: “Omolwashike ino kala noshisho nokutya, Ovalevi va etele etwali oundobwedi woimaliwa yomuJuda noyomuJerusalem, oimaliwa oyo yaMoses, omupiya wOmwene, naayo yeongalo lOvaisraeli?” 7 Osheshi ovana vomukolokoshi Atalia va panukila mo mongulu yaKalunga, ndele va kufa mo eeshali diyapuki domongulu yOmwene ndele ve di longifila ooBaal. 8 Hano palombwelo lohamba va pangela oshikefa ndele ve shi tula pondje poshivelo shongulu yOmwene. 9 Ndele va vilikila muJuda nomuJerusalem va etele Omwene oimaliwa oyo Moses, omupiya waKalunga e i lombwela Ovaisraeli mombuwa. 10 Opo nee ovakulunhu aveshe novanhu aveshe va hafa, ndele ve i eta ndele ve i ekela moshikefa fiyo sha yada. 11 Ndele alushe Ovalevi eshi va eta oshikefa kovakeleli va tulwa po kohamba, ndele va mona nokutya, oimaliwa i li mo ihapu, hamushanga wohamba nomupashukili a tulwa po komupristeli omukulunhu, va kufa mo oimaliwa moshikefa, ndele ve shi shunifa vali konhele yasho. Osho ngaha va ninga efiku nefiku ndele va ongela oimaliwa ihapu. 12 Nohamba naJehoiada ve i yandja kovalongifi ovo va pashukila oshilonga mongulu yOmwene. Ndele ovo va konga ovahongi vomamanya novahongi voiti va ningulule ongulu yOmwene, nosho yo ovahambwidi voivela naitwima va wapeke ongulu yOmwene. 13 Novalongifi voshilonga va diinina nawa, onghee oshilonga sha xuma komesho, ndele va wanifa ewapeko longulu yaKalunga pamhangela ya pangelwa ndele ve i wapeka. 14 Ndele vo eshi va mana, va etela ohamba naJehoiada oimaliwa oyo ya xupa po. Ndele oyo ya longifwa okuninga oinima yeyakulo noinima yeyambo noikwatelwa yoitwiminifo noinima yoingoldo noyoisiliveli. Ndele pomafiku aeshe aJehoiada va diinina okweetela ongulu yOmwene omaxwikiloyambo.
15 Ndele Jehoiada okwa kulupa nokwa kuta okukalamwenyo ndele ta fi. Omido daye pokufya kwaye da li efele nomilongo nhatu. 16 Nokwa pakwa peehamba moshilando shaDavid. Osheshi ye a ninga osho shiwa muIsrael naashi sha wapalela Kalunga nongulu yaye.
Joas ta fimaneke oihongwafano
17 Ndele konima yefyo laJehoiada, ovakulunhu vaJuda ve uya ndele tave linyongamene koshipala shohamba. Opo nee ohamba ye va uda, 18 ndele va efa ongulu yOmwene Kalunga kooxe ndele va fimaneka omiti domalupwelele daAsera noikalunga. Opo nee ehandu le uya kombada yaJuda noyaJerusalem omolwetimba lavo. 19 Ndele Ye okwe va tumina ovaxunganeki ve va alule kOmwene. Ndele ove va londwela, ndelenee inave va uda. 20 Opo nee Omhepo yaKalunga ya yada Sakaria, omona womupristeli Jehoiada, nokwa kala ofika mokati kovanhu ndele ta ti kuvo: “Kalunga osho ta ti: ‘Omolwashike nye tamu tauluka oipango yOmwene nye mu mone omupya! Shaashi nye mwa ekelashi Omwene, naye yo e mu ekelashi.’ ” 21 Opo nee ve mu hangakena ndele tave mu dipaa nomamanya kelombwelo lohamba molupale lokomesho yongulu yOmwene. 22 Nohamba Joas inai diladila ouwa ye u monifwa kuJehoiada, xe yaSakaria, ndelenee okwa dipaa omona waye omulumenhu. Ndelenee pokufya kwaye oye okwe i lombwela: “Omwene ne shi tale ndele ne shi handukile!”
23 Ndele pexulilo lomudo etanga lovakwaita vaAram le mu homona, ndele ve uya muJuda nomuJerusalem, ndele va dipaa ovakulunhu aveshe voshiwana ndele va tuma oixuulwa yavo aishe kohamba yomuDamaskus. 24 Nande metanga lOvaarami olo le uya mwa li ovakwaita vanini, Omwene okwa yandja momake avo omatanga manene, shaashi Ovajuda va efa Omwene Kalunga kooxe. Ndele va handukila Joas noku mu tokola.
25 Ndele vo eshi va dja po puye, osheshi ve mu fiya po momahepeko madjuwelela, ovapiya vaye ve mu hangakena omolwohonde yomona womupristeli Jehoiada. Ndele ve mu dipaela mombete yaye. Nokwa pakwa moshilando shaDavid. Ndelenee inave mu paka meembila deehamba. 26 Ndele ovo ve mu hangakena ovava: Sabad yaSimeat, omona womukainhu Omuammoni naJosabad yaSimrit, omona womukainhu Omumoabi. 27 Novana vaye ovalumenhu nomaxunganeko mahapu tae mu popi newapeko longulu yaKalunga, tala, oinima aishe ei oya shangwa membo lefatululo lomishangwa deehamba. Nomona waye Amasia okwa ninga ohamba ponhele yaye.
