2 Chronicles 35

1 Then Josiah celebrated the Passover to the LORD in Jerusalem, and the Passover lamb was slaughtered on the fourteenth day of the first month.

Now Josiah kept the Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem, and it was immolated on the fourteenth day of the first month.

2 He appointed the priests to their duties and encouraged them in the service of the house of the LORD.

And he appointed the priests in their offices, and he exhorted them to minister in the house of the Lord.

3 To the Levites who taught all Israel and were holy to the LORD, Josiah said: “Put the holy ark in the temple built by Solomon son of David king of Israel. It is not to be carried around on your shoulders. Now serve the LORD your God and His people Israel.

Also, he spoke with the Levites, by whose instruction all of Israel was sanctified to the Lord, saying: “Place the ark in the sanctuary of the temple, which Solomon, the son of David, the king of Israel, built. For never again shall you carry it. Instead, now you shall minister to the Lord your God, and to his people Israel.

4 Prepare yourselves by families in your divisions, according to the instructions written by David king of Israel and Solomon his son.

And prepare yourselves by your houses and families, within each division, just as David, the king of Israel, instructed, and just as his son Solomon has written.

5 Moreover, stand in the Holy Place by the divisions of the families of your kinsmen the lay people, and by the divisions of the families of the Levites.

And minister in the sanctuary, by the Levitical families and companies.

6 Slaughter the Passover lambs, consecrate yourselves, and make preparations for your fellow countrymen to carry out the word of the LORD given by Moses.”

And having been sanctified, immolate the Passover. And then prepare your brothers, so that they may be able to act in accord with the words which the Lord has spoken by the hand of Moses.”

7 From his own flocks and herds Josiah contributed 30,000 lambs and goats plus 3,000 bulls for the Passover offerings for all the people who were present.

After this, Josiah gave to all the people, those who had been found there at the solemnity of the Passover, thirty thousand lambs and young goats from the flocks, and other kinds of small cattle, and also three thousand oxen. All these were from the substance of the king.

8 His officials also contributed willingly to the people and priests and Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, the administrators of the house of God, gave the priests 2,600 Passover offerings and 300 bulls.

Also, his rulers offered what they had vowed freely, as much for the people as for the priests and Levites. Moreover, Hilkiah, and Zechariah, and Jehiel, rulers of the house of the Lord, gave to the priests, in order to observe the Passover, two thousand six hundred small cattle, and three hundred oxen.

9 Additionally, Conaniah and his brothers Shemaiah and Nethanel, as well as Hashabiah, Jeiel, and Jozabad, officers of the Levites, donated to the Levites 5,000 Passover offerings and 500 bulls.

And Conaniah, with Shemaiah and Nethanel, his brothers, indeed also Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, rulers of the Levites, gave to the rest of the Levites, in order to celebrate the Passover, five thousand small cattle, and five hundred oxen.

10 So the service was prepared; the priests stood in their places and the Levites in their divisions according to the king’s command.

And the ministry was prepared. And the priests stood in their office, and the Levites also stood in their companies, according to the order of the king.

11 And they slaughtered the Passover lambs, while the priests sprinkled the blood handed to them and the Levites skinned the animals.

And the Passover was immolated. And the priests sprinkled the blood with their hand, and the Levites drew away the pelts of the holocausts.

12 They set aside the burnt offerings to be given to the divisions of the families of the people to offer to the LORD, as is written in the Book of Moses; and they did the same with the bulls.

And they put these aside, so that they might give them to each one, by their houses and families, and so that they might be offered to the Lord, just as it was written in the book of Moses. And with the oxen, they acted similarly.

13 They roasted the Passover animals on the fire according to the regulation, and they boiled the other holy offerings in pots, kettles, and bowls and quickly brought them to all the people.

And they roasted the Passover above fire, in accord with what was written in the law. Yet truly, the victims of peace offerings they boiled in cauldrons and kettles and pots. And they promptly distributed these to all the common people.

14 Afterward, they made preparations for themselves and for the priests, since the priests, the descendants of Aaron, were offering up burnt offerings and fat until nightfall. So the Levites made preparations for themselves and for the priests, the descendants of Aaron.

Then afterward, they made preparations for themselves and for the priests. Indeed, the priests had been occupied in the oblations of the holocausts and the fat offerings, even until night. Therefore, the Levites made preparations for themselves and for the priests, the sons of Aaron, last.

15 The singers, the descendants of Asaph, were at their stations according to the command of David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun the king’s seer. And the gatekeepers at each gate did not need to leave their position, because their fellow Levites made preparations for them.

Now the singers, the sons of Asaph, were standing in their order, according to the instruction of David, and of Asaph and Heman and Jeduthun, the prophets of the king. Truly, the porters kept watch at each gate, so as not to depart from their ministry even for one moment. And for this reason, their brothers, the Levites, prepared foods for them.

16 So on that day the entire service of the LORD was carried out for celebrating the Passover and offering burnt offerings on the altar of the LORD, according to the command of King Josiah.

And so, the entire worship ritual of the Lord was completed on that day, so that they observed the Passover and offered holocausts upon the altar of the Lord, in accord with the precept of king Josiah.

17 The Israelites who were present also observed the Passover at that time, as well as the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days.

And the sons of Israel, who had been found there, kept the Passover at that time, with the solemnity of unleavened bread, for seven days.

18 No such Passover had been observed in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet. None of the kings of Israel ever observed a Passover like the one that Josiah observed with the priests, the Levites, all Judah, the Israelites who were present, and the people of Jerusalem.

There was no Passover similar to this one in Israel, from the days of Samuel the prophet. And neither did anyone, out of all the kings of Israel, keep such a Passover as did Josiah, the priests and Levites, and all those of Judah and Israel who had been found, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

19 In the eighteenth year of Josiah’s reign, this Passover was observed.

In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah, this Passover was celebrated.

20 After all this, when Josiah had set the temple in order, Neco king of Egypt marched up to fight at Carchemish by the Euphrates, and Josiah went out to confront him.

After Josiah had repaired the temple, Neco, the king of Egypt, ascended to fight at Carchemish, beside the Euphrates. And Josiah went out to meet him.

21 But Neco sent messengers to him, saying, “What is the issue between you and me, O king of Judah? I have not come against you today, but I am fighting another dynasty. God told me to hurry; so stop opposing God, who is with me, or He will destroy you!”

But he sent messengers to him, saying: “What is there between me and you, O king of Judah? I have not come against you today. Instead, I am fighting against another house, to which God instructed me to go promptly. Refrain from acting against God, who is with me, otherwise he may kill you.”

22 Josiah, however, did not turn away from him; instead, in order to engage him in battle, he disguised himself. He did not listen to Neco’s words from the mouth of God, but went to fight him on the Plain of Megiddo.

Josiah was not willing to return. Instead, he prepared for war against him. Neither would he agree to the words of Neco from the mouth of God. In truth, he traveled so that he might do battle in the field of Megiddo.

23 There the archers shot King Josiah, who said to his servants, “Take me away, for I am badly wounded!”

And there, having been wounded by archers, he said to his servants: “Lead me away from the battle. For I have been severely wounded.”

24 So his servants took him out of his chariot, put him in his second chariot, and brought him to Jerusalem, where he died. And Josiah was buried in the tomb of his fathers, and all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for him.

And they took him from the chariot, into another chariot which was following him, as was the custom of kings. And they transported him to Jerusalem. And he died, and he was buried in the mausoleum of his fathers. And all of Judah and Jerusalem mourned for him,

25 Then Jeremiah lamented over Josiah, and to this day all the choirs of men and women sing laments over Josiah. They established them as a statute for Israel, and indeed they are written in the Book of Laments.

most of all Jeremiah. All the singing men and women repeat his lamentations over Josiah, even to the present day. And this has become like a law in Israel. Behold, it is found written in the Lamentations.

26 As for the rest of the acts of Josiah, along with his deeds of loving devotion according to what is written in the Law of the LORD—

Now the rest of the words of Josiah, and his mercies, which were instructed by the law of the Lord,

27 his acts from beginning to end—they are indeed written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

and also his works, the first and the last, have been written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.