2 Chronicles 31

1 After the festival ended, the Israelis who were there went to all the towns in Judah and smashed the stones/pillars [for worshiping idols], and cut down the poles [for worshiping the goddess] Asherah. They destroyed the shrines on the hilltops and the altars [of Baal] throughout the areas where the tribes of Judah and Benjamin lived, and also in the areas of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. After destroying all of them, they returned to their own towns.

When all this had ended, the Israelites in attendance went out to the cities of Judah and broke up the sacred pillars, chopped down the Asherah poles, and tore down the high places and altars throughout Judah and Benjamin, as well as in Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the Israelites returned to their cities, each to his own property.

2 Hezekiah divided the priests and [other] descendants of Levi into groups. He appointed some of the groups to offer sacrifices that would be completely burned [on the altar] and offerings to maintain fellowship [with Yahweh]. He appointed some groups to do other work at the temple: some to lead the people in their worship, some to thank Yahweh, and some to sing songs to praise to Yahweh at the gates of the temple.

Hezekiah reestablished the divisions of the priests and Levites—each of them according to their duties as priests or Levites—for the burnt offerings and peace offerings, for ministry, for giving thanks, and for singing praises at the gates of the LORD’s dwelling.

3 The king contributed some of his own funds to buy animals that would be sacrificed in the morning and in the evening of each day, and on the Sabbath days, to celebrate the new moons, and during the other feasts, according to what was written in the laws [that Yahweh gave to Moses].

The king contributed from his own possessions for the regular morning and evening burnt offerings and for the burnt offerings on the Sabbaths, New Moons, and appointed feasts, as written in the Law of the LORD.

4 Hezekiah told the people living in Jerusalem to give to the priests and the other descendants of Levi the portions [of meat] that should be given to them, in order that they could devote all their time to obeying the laws of Yahweh.

Moreover, he commanded the people living in Jerusalem to make a contribution for the priests and Levites so that they could devote themselves to the Law of the LORD.

5 As soon as he told that to the people, they generously gave the first part of their harvest of grain, and the first part of the new wine [that they produced], and [olive] oil and honey, and of the crops that grew in their fields. They brought [to the temple] a tenth of all their crops.

As soon as the order went out, the Israelites generously provided the firstfruits of the grain, new wine, oil, and honey, and of all the produce of the field, and they brought in an abundance—a tithe of everything.

6 The men of Israel and Judah who were living in various towns in Judah also brought a tenth of their cattle and sheep and goats, and a tenth of other things that they had dedicated to Yahweh their God, and they piled all those things in heaps.

And the Israelites and Judahites who lived in the cities of Judah also brought a tithe of their herds and flocks and a tithe of the holy things consecrated to the LORD their God, and they laid them in large heaps.

7 They started to do that in May and finished doing it in September.

In the third month they began building up the heaps, and they finished in the seventh month.

8 When Hezekiah and his officials saw the heaps, they praised Yahweh and [requested God to] bless the people.

When Hezekiah and his officials came and viewed the heaps, they blessed the LORD and His people Israel.

9 But Hezekiah asked the priests and other descendants of Levi, “Why are these heaps of things here?”

Then Hezekiah questioned the priests and Levites about the heaps,

10 Then Azariah the [Supreme] Priest, a descendant of Zadok, replied, “Since the time that the people started to bring their offerings to the temple, we have had even more food than we need. This has happened because Yahweh has greatly blessed our fellow Israelis, with the result that all this is left over [after we priests and other descendants of Levi took all that we need]!”

and Azariah, the chief priest of the household of Zadok, answered him, “Since the people began to bring their contributions into the house of the LORD, we have had enough to eat and there is plenty left over, because the LORD has blessed His people; this great abundance is what is left over.”

11 Then Hezekiah ordered that they should prepare storerooms in the temple. So they did that.

Then Hezekiah commanded them to prepare storerooms in the house of the LORD, and they did so.

12 Then they brought into the storerooms all the tithes and offerings and the things dedicated to Yahweh [which the people had brought]. One of the descendants of Levi whose name was Conaniah was in charge of those things, and his [younger] brother Shimei was his assistant.

And they faithfully brought in the contributions, tithes, and dedicated gifts. Conaniah the Levite was the officer in charge of them, and his brother Shimei was second.

13 Those two men supervised Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismakiah, Mahath and Benaiah while they did the work. They were appointed by King Hezekiah; Azariah was in charge of [everything that was done in] the temple.

Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were overseers under the authority of Conaniah and his brother Shimei, by appointment of King Hezekiah and of Azariah the chief official of the house of God.

14 Kore the son of Imnah, another descendant of Levi, who guarded the east gate of the temple, was in charge of the offerings to God that were made voluntarily. He distributed to the priests and [other] descendants of Levi the offerings and other things that were dedicated to Yahweh.

Kore son of Imnah the Levite, the keeper of the East Gate, was in charge of the freewill offerings given to God, distributing the contributions to the LORD and the consecrated gifts.

15 Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah and Shecaniah faithfully assisted him in the towns where the priests lived. They distributed those things to the groups of their fellow priests; they distributed them to everyone, from the youngest to the oldest.

Under his authority, Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah faithfully distributed portions to their fellow priests in their cities, according to their divisions, old and young alike.

16 They also distributed things to the males who were at least 30 years old, those whose names were written on the scrolls where lists of family names were written. They were males who [were allowed to] enter the temple to perform their tasks/work each day, the tasks that each group had been assigned to do.

In addition, they distributed portions to the males registered by genealogy who were three years of age or older—to all who would enter the house of the LORD for their daily duties for service in the responsibilities of their divisions—

17 The names of the priests were on the scrolls where their clans’ names were written. They also distributed things to groups of [other] descendants of Levi, those who were at least 20 years old.

and to the priests enrolled according to their families in the genealogy, as well as to the Levites twenty years of age or older, according to their duties and divisions.

18 They included all their little children and wives and other sons and daughters whose names were on the scrolls where their clans’ names were written, because they also faithfully had dedicated themselves to Yahweh.

The genealogy included all the little ones, wives, sons, and daughters in the whole assembly. For they had faithfully consecrated themselves as holy.

19 [Hezekiah] also appointed other men to distribute portions of those offerings to the priests and other descendants of Levi who were living in the pasturelands around the towns in Judah. But they gave things only to those who were descendants of Aaron [the first Supreme Priest], whose names were on the scrolls containing the names of their clans.

As for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who lived on the farmlands around each of their cities or in any other city, men were designated by name to distribute a portion to every male among the priests and to every Levite listed by the genealogies.

20 That is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah. He always faithfully did things that Yahweh his God considered to be right and good.

So this is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah. He did what was good and upright and true before the LORD his God.

21 In everything that he did for the worship in the temple, and as he obeyed God’s laws and commands, he tried to find out what his God wanted, and he worked energetically. So he was successful.

He was diligent in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law and the commandments, in order to seek his God. And so he prospered.