1 Joás começou a reinar em Judá no sétimo ano do reinado de Jeú, rei de Israel. Reinou em Jerusalém por quarenta anos. Sua mãe se chamava Zíbia e era de Berseba. 2 Durante toda a vida, Joás fez o que era certo aos olhos do Senhor, como o sacerdote Joiada o orientava. 3 Mesmo assim, não destruiu os santuários idólatras, e o povo continuou a oferecer sacrifícios e a queimar incenso nesses lugares.
4 Certo dia, o rei Joás disse aos sacerdotes: "Juntem toda a prata trazida como oferta sagrada ao templo do Senhor, tanto o imposto do censo e os pagamentos de votos como as ofertas voluntárias. 5 Cada sacerdote deve recolher a prata com um dos tesoureiros e usá-la para fazer os reparos necessários no templo".
6 Contudo, no vigésimo terceiro ano do reinado de Joás, os sacerdotes ainda não haviam feito os reparos no templo. 7 Então o rei Joás chamou Joiada e os outros sacerdotes e lhes perguntou: "Por que ainda não fizeram os reparos no templo? Não recebam mais a prata dos tesoureiros, exceto a que for usada para reparar o templo". 8 Os sacerdotes concordaram em não aceitar mais a prata do povo e em deixar que outros assumissem a responsabilidade de fazer os reparos no templo.
9 O sacerdote Joiada fez uma abertura na tampa de uma caixa grande e a colocou do lado direito do altar, na entrada do templo do Senhor. Os sacerdotes que guardavam a entrada colocavam na caixa todas as contribuições do povo. 10 Sempre que a caixa ficava cheia, o secretário da corte e o sumo sacerdote pesavam a prata trazida ao templo do Senhor e a colocavam em sacolas. 11 Entregavam a prata aos supervisores da construção, que a usavam para pagar os homens que trabalhavam no templo do Senhor: os carpinteiros, os construtores, 12 os pedreiros e os cortadores de pedra. Também compravam a madeira e as pedras lavradas necessárias para fazer os reparos no templo do Senhor e pagavam outras despesas relacionadas à reforma do templo.
13 A contribuição trazida ao templo não era usada para fazer taças de prata, nem cortadores de pavio, nem bacias, nem trombetas, nem outros utensílios de ouro ou prata para o templo do Senhor. 14 Era entregue aos trabalhadores, que a usavam para fazer os reparos no templo. 15 Não se pedia que os supervisores da construção prestassem contas desse valor, pois eram homens de confiança. 16 Mas as contribuições das ofertas pela culpa e das ofertas pelo pecado não eram trazidas ao templo do Senhor. Eram entregues aos sacerdotes para seu uso pessoal.
17 Nessa época, Hazael, rei da Síria, guerreou contra Gate e a conquistou. Então resolveu atacar Jerusalém. 18 O rei Joás recolheu todos os objetos sagrados que Josafá, Jeorão e Acazias, os reis anteriores de Judá, tinham consagrado e os que ele mesmo consagrara. Enviou-os a Hazael, junto com todo o ouro que havia na tesouraria do templo do Senhor e no palácio real. Com isso, Hazael suspendeu o ataque a Jerusalém.
19 Os demais acontecimentos do reinado de Joás e tudo que ele fez estão registrados no Livro da História dos Reis de Judá.
20 Os oficiais de Joás conspiraram contra ele e o assassinaram em Bete-Milo, na estrada para Sila. 21 Os oficiais que o assassinaram foram Jozacar, filho de Simeate, e Jeozabade, filho de Somer.
Joás foi sepultado com seus antepassados na Cidade de Davi. Seu filho Amazias foi seu sucessor.
1 Joash began to reign in the seventh year of Jehu. And he reigned forty years in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was Zibiah of Beersheba.
2 And Joash did that which was right in the eyes of LORD all his days in which Jehoiada the priest instructed him.
3 However the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.
4 And Joash said to the priests, All the money of the hallowed things that is brought into the house of LORD, in current money, the money of the persons for whom each man is rated, and all the money that it come in any man's heart to
5 let the priests take it to them, every man from his acquaintance, and they shall repair the broken parts of the house wherever any breach shall be found.
6 But it was so, that in the twenty-third year of king Joash the priests had not repaired the broken parts of the house.
7 Then king Joash called for Jehoiada the priest, and for the [other] priests, and said to them, Why do ye not repair the broken parts of the house? Now therefore take no [more] money from your acquaintance, but deliver it for the br
8 And the priests consented that they should take no [more] money from the people, neither repair the broken parts of the house.
9 But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as a man comes into the house of LORD. And the priests who kept the threshold put in it all the money that was
10 And it was so, when they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king's scribe and the high priest came up, and they put up in bags and counted the money that was found in the house of LORD.
11 And they gave the money that was weighed out into the hands of those who did the work, who had the oversight of the house of LORD. And they paid it out to the carpenters and the builders who worked upon the house of LORD,
12 and to the masons and the hewers of stone, and for buying timber and hewn stone to repair the broken parts of the house of LORD, and for all that was laid out for the house to repair it.
13 But there were not made for the house of LORD cups of silver, snuffers, basins, trumpets, any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the house of LORD,
14 for they gave that to those who did the work, and with it repaired the house of LORD.
15 Moreover they did not reckon with the men into whose hand they delivered the money to give to those who did the work, for they dealt faithfully.
16 The money for the trespass-offerings, and the money for the sin-offerings, was not brought into the house of LORD; it was the priests'.
17 Then Hazael king of Syria went up, and fought against Gath, and took it. And Hazael set his face to go up to Jerusalem.
18 And Joash king of Judah took all the hallowed things that Jehoshaphat and Jehoram and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had dedicated, and his own hallowed things, and all the gold that was found in the treasures of the house o
19 Now the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
20 And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and smote Joash at the house of Millo, [on the way] that goes down to Silla.
21 For Jozacar the son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his servants, smote him, and he died. And they buried him with his fathers in the city of David. And Amaziah his son reigned in his stead.