2 Kings 12

2 Kings 12 covers the reign of Joash, king of Judah. In the preceding chapter, 2 Kings 11, the priest Jehoiada overthrew Athaliah and made the seven-year-old Joash king. This chapter continues directly from that account.

Outline

• Verses 1–3 In the seventh year of Jehu, king of Israel, Joash begins to reign and rules forty years in Jerusalem. He does what is right while he is instructed by Jehoiada. The high places (sites of worship outside Jerusalem), however, are not removed.
• Verses 4–8 The king charges the priests to repair the breaches of the temple with the silver brought into it. Yet by the twenty-third year of Joash the repairs still have not been made. The priests therefore agree neither to receive any more silver nor to take responsibility for the repairs.
• Verses 9–16 Jehoiada places beside the altar a chest with a hole bored in its lid. When the chest is full, the king's scribe and the high priest count the silver and entrust it to the workmen. This silver is used only for the repairs, not for making vessels. Because the workmen deal faithfully, no accounting is required of them. The silver from the trespass offerings and sin offerings is assigned to the priests.
• Verses 17–18 Hazael king of Aram attacks Gath and sets his face to go up against Jerusalem. Joash sends him the hallowed things dedicated by his predecessors and by himself, together with the gold found in the treasuries of the temple and the king's house, and Hazael withdraws.
• Verses 19–21 His servants Jozachar and Jehozabad kill Joash at the house of Millo. His son Amaziah succeeds him as king.

Key Verses

• 2 Kings 12:2 "Jehoash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him." This verse is often read as implying that Joash's faithfulness was sustained only under the influence of his mentor.
• 2 Kings 12:9 "Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it." This scene marks a change in how offerings were collected and managed.
• 2 Kings 12:15 "They reckoned not with the men … for they dealt faithfully." This verse shows the integrity of the workmen.

People and Places

• Joash: King of Judah. He is a different person from Joash (king of Israel) of the northern kingdom.
• Jehoiada: The high priest, who made Joash king and instructed him.
• Zibiah: The mother of Joash, from Beersheba.
• Hazael: King of Aram.
• Jozachar and Jehozabad: The servants who killed Joash.
• Amaziah: The son and successor of Joash.
• Gath: A city of Philistia.
• House of Millo: The place where Joash was killed.
• Temple in Jerusalem: The building repaired in this chapter.

Points for Reflection

2 Chronicles 24 records the same period in greater detail. After Jehoiada's death, Joash turned to idolatry and killed Jehoiada's son Zechariah. Chronicles explains that this was the reason his servants conspired against him. Second Kings does not record these events. For this reason, many interpreters read the phrase "wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him" in verse 2 in light of the account in Chronicles.

In the New Testament, Matthew 23:35 mentions Zacharias, who was slain "between the temple and the altar." Many interpreters identify him with the Zechariah of 2 Chronicles 24. Opinions differ, however, because Matthew calls him "son of Barachias."

"The book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah" in verse 19 is not the biblical book of Chronicles. It is understood to be a royal record consulted by the author of Kings.

In the Korean Church

The account of Jehoiada's collection chest is often cited in sermons on the handling of offerings and on transparency in church finances. It is also used in sermons on temple repair or church building.