歷代志下24:1-16

 

24:1 約阿施登基的時候年七歲，在耶路撒冷作王四十年。他母親名叫西比亞，是別是巴人。
24:2 祭司耶何耶大在世的時候，約阿施行耶和華眼中看為正的事。
24:3 耶何耶大為他娶了兩個妻，並且生兒養女。
24:4 此後，約阿施有意重修耶和華的殿，
24:5 便召聚眾祭司和利未人，吩咐他們說：「你們要往猶大各城去，使以色列眾人捐納銀子，每年可以修理你們上帝的殿；你們要急速辦理這事。」只是利未人不急速辦理。
24:6 王召了大祭司耶何耶大來，對他說：「從前耶和華的僕人摩西，為法櫃的帳幕與以色列會眾所定的捐項，你為何不叫利未人照這例從猶大和耶路撒冷帶來作殿的費用呢？
24:7 （因為那惡婦亞她利雅的眾子曾拆毀上帝的殿，又用耶和華殿中分別為聖的物供奉巴力。）
24:8 於是王下令，眾人做了一櫃，放在耶和華殿的門外，
24:9 又通告猶大和耶路撒冷的百姓，要將上帝僕人摩西在曠野所吩咐以色列人的捐項給耶和華送來。
24:10 眾首領和百姓都歡歡喜喜地將銀子送來，投入櫃中，直到捐完。
24:11 利未人見銀子多了，就把櫃抬到王所派的司事面前；王的書記和大祭司的屬員來將櫃倒空，仍放在原處。日日都是這樣，積蓄的銀子甚多。
24:12 王與耶何耶大將銀子交給耶和華殿裡辦事的人，他們就雇了石匠、木匠重修耶和華的殿，又雇了鐵匠、銅匠修理耶和華的殿。
24:13 工人操作，漸漸修成，將上帝殿修造得與從前一樣，而且甚是堅固。
24:14 工程完了，他們就把其餘的銀子拿到王與耶何耶大面前，用以製造耶和華殿供奉所用的器皿和調羹，並金銀的器皿。耶何耶大在世的時候，眾人常在耶和華殿裡獻燔祭。
24:15 耶何耶大年紀老邁，日子滿足而死。死的時候年一百三十歲，
24:16 葬在大衛城列王的墳墓裡；因為他在以色列人中行善，又事奉上帝，修理上帝的殿。

Joash was seven years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty years. His mother’s name was Zibiah; she was from Beersheba. ² Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the years of Jehoiada the priest. ³ Jehoiada chose two wives for him, and he had sons and daughters.

⁴ Some time later Joash decided to restore the temple of the Lord. ⁵ He called together the priests and Levites and said to them, “Go to the towns of Judah and collect the money due annually from all Israel, to repair the temple of your God. Do it now.” But the Levites did not act at once.

⁶ Therefore the king summoned Jehoiada the chief priest and said to him, “Why haven’t you required the Levites to bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax imposed by Moses the servant of the Lord and by the assembly of Israel for the tent of the covenant law?”

⁷ Now the sons of that wicked woman Athaliah had broken into the temple of God and had used even its sacred objects for the Baals.

⁸ At the king’s command, a chest was made and placed outside, at the gate of the temple of the Lord. ⁹ A proclamation was then issued in Judah and Jerusalem that they should bring to the Lord the tax that Moses the servant of God had required of Israel in the wilderness. ¹⁰ All the officials and all the people brought their contributions gladly, dropping them into the chest until it was full. ¹¹ Whenever the chest was brought in by the Levites to the king’s officials and they saw that there was a large amount of money, the royal secretary and the officer of the chief priest would come and empty the chest and carry it back to its place. They did this regularly and collected a great amount of money. ¹² The king and Jehoiada gave it to those who carried out the work required for the temple of the Lord. They hired masons and carpenters to restore the Lord’s temple, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the temple.

¹³ The men in charge of the work were diligent, and the repairs progressed under them. They rebuilt the temple of God according to its original design and reinforced it. ¹⁴ When they had finished, they brought the rest of the money to the king and Jehoiada, and with it were made articles for the Lord’s temple: articles for the service and for the burnt offerings, and also dishes and other objects of gold and silver. As long as Jehoiada lived, burnt offerings were presented continually in the temple of the Lord.

¹⁵ Now Jehoiada was old and full of years, and he died at the age of a hundred and thirty. ¹⁶ He was buried with the kings in the City of David, because of the good he had done in Israel for God and his temple.

 

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     耶何耶大在世的時候，盡心盡力輔佐約阿施，讓約阿施做好一位猶大王該做的事。不僅如此，還用巧計――準備一個奉獻箱，使猶大人未聖殿的修建和利未人服事的需要來奉獻。

 

    從猶大人奉獻的行動告訴我們，上帝喜悅我們的敬拜中有「奉獻」這個項目，讓我們把當納上帝的，在禮拜的時候歸給上帝，這是上帝所喜悅的！奉獻的意義如《歷代志上》29章14節所說：「…因為萬物都從你而來，我們把從你而得的獻給你。」

 

    因此，我們奉獻不要以為自己很慷慨，是上帝先對我們慷慨，我們才有能力好奉獻呢！