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Now in the seventhyearJehoiadastrengthened himself, and tookcaptains of hundreds: Azariah the son of Jeroham, Ishmael the son of Johanan, Azariah the son of Obed, Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri, and they entered into a covenant with him.
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They wentthroughoutJudah and gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah, and the heads of the fathers' households of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.
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Then all the assemblymade a covenant with the king in the house of God. And Jehoiada said to them, "Behold, the king'sson shall reign, as the LORD has spokenconcerning the sons of David.
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and one third shall be at the king'shouse, and a third at the Gate of the Foundation; and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the LORD.
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"But let no one enter the house of the LORDexcept* the priests and the ministeringLevites; they may enter, for they are holy. And let all the peoplekeep the charge of the LORD.
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"The Levites will surround* the king, eachman with his weapons in his hand; and whoever enters the house, let him be killed. Thus be with the king when he comes in and when he goes out."
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So the Levites and allJudahdid according to all that Jehoiada the priestcommanded. And eachone of them took his men who were to come in on the sabbath, with those who were to go out on the sabbath, for Jehoiada the priest did not dismiss any of the divisions.
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Then Jehoiada the priestgave to the captains of hundreds the spears and the large and smallshieldswhich had been KingDavid's, which were in the house of God.
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He stationedall the people, eachman with his weapon in his hand, from the rightside of the house to the leftside of the house, by the altar and by the house, around the king.
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Then they brought out the king'sson and put the crown on him, and gave him the testimony and made him king. And Jehoiada and his sonsanointed him and said, "Long live the king!"
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She looked, and behold, the king was standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the trumpeters were beside the king. And all the people of the landrejoiced and blewtrumpets, the singers with their musicalinstrumentsleading the praise. Then Athaliahtore her clothes and said, "Treason! Treason!"
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Jehoiada the priestbrought out the captains of hundreds who were appointed over the army and said to them, "Bring her out between** the ranks; and whoever follows* her, put to death with the sword." For the priestsaid, "Let her not be put to death in the house of the LORD.
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And all the peoplewent to the house of Baal and tore it down, and they broke in pieces his altars and his images, and killedMattan the priest of Baalbefore the altars.
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Moreover, Jehoiadaplaced the offices of the house of the LORD under the authority of the Leviticalpriests, whomDavid had assignedover the house of the LORD, to offer the burntofferings of the LORD, as it is written in the law of Moses -with rejoicing and singingaccording to the order of David.
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He took the captains of hundreds, the nobles, the rulers of the people and all the people of the land, and brought the kingdown from the house of the LORD, and camethrough the uppergate to the king'shouse. And they placed the king upon the royalthrone.