2 Chronicles 35

1 And Josiah kept a Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem; on the fourteenth day of the first month they put the Passover lamb to death.

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

2 And he gave the priests their places, making them strong for the work of the house of God.

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

3 And he said to the Levites, the teachers of all Israel, who were holy to the Lord, See, the holy ark is in the house which Solomon, the son of David, king of Israel, made; it will no longer have to be transported on your backs: now be the servants of 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 And make yourselves ready in your divisions, by your families, as it is ordered in the writings of David, king of Israel, and of 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 And take your positions in the holy place, grouped in the families of your brothers, the children of the people, and for every division let there be a part of a family of the Levites.

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

6 And put the Passover lamb to death, and make yourselves holy, and make it ready for your brothers, so that the orders given by the Lord through Moses may be done.

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 And Josiah gave lambs and goats from the flock as Passover offerings for all the people who were present, to the number of thirty thousand, and three thousand oxen: these were from the king's private property.

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 And his captains freely gave an offering to the people, the priests, and the Levites. Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, the rulers of the house of God, gave to the priests for the Passover offerings two thousand, six hundred small cattle and three hundred oxen.

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 And Conaniah and Shemaiah and Nethanel, his brothers, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, the chiefs of the Levites, gave to the Levites for the Passover offerings five thousand small cattle and five hundred oxen.

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 everything was made ready and the priests took their places with the Levites in their divisions, as the king had said.

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 put the Passover lambs to death, the blood being drained out by the priests when it was given to them, and the Levites did the skinning.

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 And they took away the burned offerings, so that they might give them to be offered to the Lord for the divisions of the families of the people, as it is recorded in the book of Moses. And they did the same with the oxen.

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 And the Passover lamb was cooked over the fire, as it says in the law; and the holy offerings were cooked in pots and basins and vessels, and taken quickly 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 And after that, they made ready for themselves and for the priests; for the priests, the sons of Aaron, were offering the burned offerings and the fat till night; so the Levites made ready what was needed for themselves and for the priests, the sons 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 And the sons of Asaph, the makers of melody, were in their places, as ordered by David and Asaph and Heman and Jeduthun, the king's seer; and the door-keepers were stationed at every door: there was no need for them to go away from their places, for their brothers the Levites made ready 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 everything needed for the worship of the Lord was made ready that same day, for the keeping of the Passover and the offering of burned offerings on the altar of the Lord, as King Josiah had given orders.

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 And all the children of Israel who were present kept the Passover and the feast of unleavened bread at that time 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 Passover like it had been kept in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet; and not one of the kings of Israel had ever kept a Passover like the one kept by Josiah and the priests and the Levites and all those of Judah and Israel 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 the rule of Josiah this Passover was kept.

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

20 After all this, and after Josiah had put the house in order, Neco, king of Egypt, went up to make war at Carchemish by the river Euphrates; and Josiah went out against 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 he sent representatives to him, saying, What have I to do with you, O king of Judah? I have not come against you this day, but against those with whom I am at war; and God has given me orders to go forward quickly: keep out of God's way, for he is with me, or he will send destruction on 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 However, Josiah would not go back; but keeping to his purpose of fighting against him, and giving no attention to the words of Neco, which came from God, he went forward to the fight in the valley 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 And the bowmen sent their arrows at King Josiah, and the king 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 the line of war-carriages, and put him in his second carriage and took him to Jerusalem, where he came to his end, and they put his body in the resting-place of his fathers. And in all Judah and Jerusalem there was great weeping for Josiah.

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 And Jeremiah made a song of grief for Josiah; and to this day Josiah is named by all the makers of melody, men and women, in their songs of grief; they made it a rule in Israel; and the songs are recorded among the songs of grief.

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 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and the good he did, in keeping with what is recorded 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 And all his acts, first and last, are recorded 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.