Discovery Box2 Kings 11:13-18 
Context11:13 When Athaliah heard the royal guard 1 shout, she joined the crowd 2 at the Lord’s temple. 11:14 Then she saw 3 the king standing by the pillar, according to custom. The officers stood beside the king with their trumpets and all the people of the land were celebrating and blowing trumpets. Athaliah tore her clothes and screamed, “Treason, treason!” 4 11:15 Jehoiada the priest ordered the officers of the units of hundreds, who were in charge of the army, 5 “Bring her outside the temple to the guards. 6 Put the sword to anyone who follows her.” The priest gave this order because he had decided she should not be executed in the Lord’s temple. 7 11:16 They seized her and took her into the precincts of the royal palace through the horses’ entrance. 8 There she was executed.
11:17 Jehoiada then drew up a covenant between the Lord and the king and people, stipulating that they should be loyal to the Lord. 9 11:18 All the people of the land went and demolished 10 the temple of Baal. They smashed its altars and idols 11 to bits. 12 They killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altar. Jehoiada the priest 13 then placed guards at the Lord’s temple.
1 tc The MT reads, “and Athaliah heard the sound of the runners, the people.” The term הָעָם (ha’am), “the people,” is probably a scribal addition anticipating the reference to the people later in the verse and in v. 14.
2 tn Heb “she came to the people.”
3 tn Heb “and she saw, and look.”
4 tn Or “conspiracy, conspiracy.”
5 tn The Hebrew text also has, “and said to them.” This is redundant in English and has not been translated.
6 tn Heb “ranks.”
7 tn Heb “for the priest had said, ‘Let her not be put to death in the house of the
8 tn Heb “and they placed hands on her, and she went the way of the entrance of the horses [into] the house of the king.”
9 tn Heb “and Jehoiada made a covenant between the
10 tn Or “tore down.”
11 tn Or “images.”
12 tn The Hebrew construction translated “smashed…to bits” is emphatic. The adverbial infinitive absolute (הֵיטֵב [hetev], “well”) accompanying the Piel form of the verb שָׁבַר (shavar), “break,” suggests thorough demolition.
13 tn Heb “the priest.” Jehoiada’s name is added for clarification.
