11 Then they paid the men who were in charge of the work on the Lord’S Temple. They paid the carpenters and other builders who worked on the Lord’S Temple.
12 They used that money to pay the stoneworkers and stonecutters, and they used it to buy timber, cut stone, and everything else to repair the Lord’S Temple.
13-14 People gave money for the Lord’S Temple, but the priests could not use this money to make silver cups, snuffers, basins, trumpets, or any of the gold and silver dishes that were to be used inside the Lord’S temple. This money was used only to pay the workers who repaired the Lord’S Temple.
15 Those who were in charge of paying the workers did not have to give a report of how they spent the money, because they could be trusted.
16 People gave money when they offered guilt offerings and sin offerings, but that money was not used for the Lord’S temple. It belonged to the priests.
17 Hazael was the king of Aram. He went to fight against the city of Gath and defeated it. Then he made plans to go fight against Jerusalem.
18 Joash and his ancestors—Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah—had all been kings of Judah. They had given many things to the Lord that were kept in his Temple. Joash gathered all these things and all the gold that was stored in the Temple and in his palace. He sent all this treasure to King Hazael of Aram, who then commanded his army to leave Jerusalem.