1   In the seventh year Jehoiada felt himself strong enough to make an agreement with Azariah son of Jeroham, Ishmael son of Jehohanan, Azariah son of Obed, Maaseiah son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat son of Zichri, all captains of units of a hundred. 2   They went all through Judah and gathered to Jerusalem the Levites from the cities of Judah and the heads of clans in Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. 3   All the assembly made a compact with the king in the house of God, and Jehoiada said to them, ‘Here is the king's son! He shall be king, as the Lord promised that the sons of David should be. 4   This is what you must do: a third of you, priests and Levites, as you come on duty on the sabbath, are to be on guard at the threshold gates, 5   another third are to be in the royal palace, and another third are to be at the Foundation Gate, while all the people will be in the courts of the house of the Lord. 6   Let no one enter the house of the Lord except the priests and the attendant Levites; they may enter, for they are holy, but all the people shall continue to keep the Lord's charge. 7   The Levites shall mount guard

The kings from Rehoboam to Ahaz round the king, each with his weapons at the ready; anyone who tries to enter the house is to be put to death. They shall stay with the king wherever he goes.’

8   The Levites and all Judah carried out the orders of Jehoiada the priest to the letter. Each captain took his men, both those who came on duty on the sabbath and those who came off, for Jehoiada the priest had not released the outgoing divisions. 9   And Jehoiada the priest handed out to the captains King David's spears, shields, and bucklers, ^note which were in the house of God; 10   and he posted all the people, each man carrying his weapon at the ready, from corner to corner of the house to north and south, ^note surrounding the king. 11   Then they brought out the king's son, put the crown on his head, handed him the warrant and proclaimed him king, and Jehoiada and his sons anointed him; and a shout went up: ‘Long live the king.’ 12   When Athaliah heard the noise of the people as they ran about cheering for the king, she came into the 13   house of the Lord where the people were and found the king standing on the dais ^note at the entrance, amidst outbursts of song and fanfares of trumpets in his honour; all the populace were rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and singers with musical instruments were leading the celebrations. Athaliah rent her clothes and cried, ‘Treason! Treason!’ 14   Jehoiada the priest gave orders to ^note the captains in command of the troops: ‘Bring her outside the precincts and let anyone in attendance on her be put to the sword’; for the priest said, ‘Do not kill her in the house of the Lord.’ 15   So they laid hands on her and took her to the royal palace and killed her there at the passage to the Horse Gate.

16   Then Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord ^note and the whole people and the king, that they should be the Lord's people. 17   And all the people went into the temple of Baal and pulled it down; they smashed its altars and images, and they slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. 18   Then Jehoiada committed the supervision of the house of the Lord to the charge of the priests and ^note the Levites whom David had allocated to the house of the Lord, to offer whole-offerings to the Lord as prescribed in the law of Moses, with the singing and rejoicing as handed down from David. 19   He stationed the door-keepers at the gates of the house of the Lord, to prevent anyone entering who was in any way unclean. 20   Then he took the captains of units of a hundred, the nobles, and the governors of the people, and all the people of the land, and they escorted the king from the house of the Lord through the Upper Gate to the royal palace, and seated him on the royal throne.

The kings from Rehoboam to Ahaz 21   The whole people rejoiced and the city was tranquil. That is how Athaliah was put to the sword.

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