2 Chronicles 35

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

And Josiah kept, in Jerusalem, a passover unto Yahweh, —and they slaughtered the passover, on the fourteenth of the first month.

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

And he set the priests over their charges, —and encouraged them unto the service of the house of Yahweh;

3 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.

and said to the Levites who gave instruction to all Israel as to the things which were hallowed unto Yahweh, Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon son of David king of Israel did build, it is not yours as a burden on the shoulder, —Now, serve ye Yahweh your God, and his people Israel;

4 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.

and prepare yourselves by your ancestral houses, according to your courses, —by the writing of David king of Israel, and by what hath been written by Solomon his son;

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

and stand ye in the holy place, by the divisions of the ancestral house, for your brethren, the sons of the people, and the partitioning of an ancestral house, for the Levites.

6 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.”

So slaughter ye the passover, —and hallow yourselves, and prepare for your brethren, that they may do according to the word of Yahweh, by the hand of Moses.

7 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.

And Josiah presented to the sons of the people—of flocks, young sheep and the young of the goats, the whole for the passover offerings, for all present, to the number of thirty thousand, and, of bullocks, three thousand, —these, out of the substance of the king.

8 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.

And, his rulers, willingly, to the people and to the priests and to the Levites, presented, —Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, chief rulers of the house of God, unto the priests, did give, for passover offerings, two thousand and six hundred, and, of bullocks, three hundred;

9 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.

and, Conaniah, and Shemaiah and Nethanel his brethren, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, rulers of the Levites, presented to the Levites, for passover offerings, five thousand, and, of bullocks, five hundred.

10 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.

Thus was the service prepared, —and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites in their courses, according to the commandment of the king.

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

So they slaughtered the passover, and the priests dashed [the blood received] at their hand, and the Levites were flaying [the offerings].

12 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.

Then they removed the ascending-sacrifice, that they might give them—by the divisions of each ancestral house—unto the sons of the people, to offer unto Yahweh, as it is written in the Book of Moses, —and, in like manner, with the bullocks.

13 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.

And they cooked the passover with fire, according to the regulation, —but, the hallowed things, cooked they in cauldrons and in pots and in bowls, and then took quickly, unto all the sons of the people.

14 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.

And, afterwards, prepared they for themselves and for the priests, because, the priests, the sons of Aaron, had been engaged in offering up the ascending-sacrifice and the fat pieces, until night, —the Levites, therefore prepared for themselves, and for the priests, the sons of Aaron.

15 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.

the singers also, the sons of Asaph, were in their place, according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the seer of the king, and, the doorkeepers, were at the several doors, —there was no need for them to remove from their service, for, their brethren the Levites, prepared for them.

16 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.

Thus was all the service of Yahweh prepared on that day; to keep the passover, and to offer up the ascending-sacrifice, upon the altar of Yahweh, —according to the commandment of King Josiah.

17 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.

So the sons of Israel who were present kept the passover at that time, —and the festival of unleavened cakes, seven days.

18 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.

And there had not been kept, a passover like it, in Israel, since the days of Samuel the prophet, —yea, none of the kings of Israel, had kept such a passover as was kept by Josiah and the priests and the Levites and all Judah and Israel that were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

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

In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah, was kept this passover.

20 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.

After all this—when Josiah had prepared the house, Neco king of Egypt came up, -to fight against Carchemish, by Euphrates, and Josiah went forth against him.

21 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.”

But he sent unto him messengers, saying—What have I to do with thee, O king of Judah? not against thee, [have I come] this day, but against the house wherewith I have war, and, God, hath given word to speed me, —cease thou from [provoking] God who is with me, lest he destroy thee.

22 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.

Howbeit Josiah turned not his face from him, for, to fight against him, he had disguised himself, and he hearkened not unto the words of Neco, from the mouth of God, —so he came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.

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

And the archers shot at King Josiah, —and the king said unto his servants, Take me away, for I am sore wounded.

24 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,

So his servants took him away out of the war-chariot, and conveyed him in a second chariot which he had, and carried him to Jerusalem, and he died, and was buried in the sepulchres of his fathers, —and, all Judah and Jerusalem, were mourning over Josiah.

25 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.

And Jeremiah chanted a dirge over Josiah, and all the singing men and singing women in their dirges have spoken concerning Josiah, until this day, and they appointed them by statute for Israel, —and, there they are, written among the dirges.

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

But, the rest of the story of Josiah, and his lovingkindness, —according to that which is written in the law of Yahweh:

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

even his story, first and last, there it is, written in the book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.