Jehoiada's Reforms^(A)

¹⁶ The priest Jehoiada had King Joash and the people join him in making a covenant that they would be the Lord's people. ¹⁷ Then they all went to the temple of Baal and tore it down. They smashed the altars and idols there and killed Mattan, the priest of Baal, in front of the altars. ¹⁸ Jehoiada put the priests and Levites in charge of the work of the Temple. They were to carry out the duties assigned to them by King David and to burn the sacrifices offered to the Lord in accordance with the Law of Moses. They were also in charge of the music and the celebrations. ¹⁹ Jehoiada also put guards on duty at the Temple gates to keep out anyone who was ritually unclean.

²⁰ The army officers, the leading citizens, the officials, and all the rest of the people joined Jehoiada in a procession that brought the king from the Temple to the palace. They entered by the main gate, and the king took his place on the throne. ²¹ All the people were filled with happiness, and the city was quiet, now that Athaliah had been killed.