2 Koenige 23

1 Da sandte der König hin, und man versammelte bei ihm alle Ältesten Judas und Jerusalems.

Then the king summoned all the elders of Jerusalem and [of the other places in] Judah.

2 Dann ging der König zum Hause des Herrn hinauf, mit ihm alle Männer Judas und alle Einwohner Jerusalems, ebenso die Priester und Propheten sowie das ganze Volk, groß und klein. Nun las er vor ihren Ohren alle Worte des Bundesbuches vor, das im Hause des Herrn gefunden worden.

They went together to the temple, along with the priests and the prophets, and many other [HYP] people, from the most important people to the least important people. And while they listened, the king read to them all of the laws that Moses had written. He read from the scroll that had been found in the temple.

3 Dann trat der König an die Säule und schloß vor dem Herrn den Bund, dem Herrn nachzufolgen und seine Gebote, Gebräuche und Satzungen von ganzem Herzen und aus ganzer Seele zu beobachten und so dieses Bundes Worte, die in diesem Buch standen, zu erfüllen. Alles Volk trat in den Bund.

Then the king stood next to the pillar [where the kings stood when they made important announcements], and while Yahweh was listening, he repeated his promise to sincerely obey [DOU] all of Yahweh’s commands and regulations [DOU]. He also promised to (fulfill the conditions of/do what was written in) the agreement he made with Yahweh. And all the people also promised to obey the agreement.

4 Der König gebot nun dem Hohenpriester Chilkia, dem zweiten Priester und den Schwellenhütern, aus dem Tempel des Herrn alle Geräte hinauszuschaffen, die für den Baal, die Aschera und das ganze Himmelsheer gemacht waren. Dann verbrannte er sie außerhalb Jerusalems in den Fluren am Kidron. Ihren Staub aber brachte er nach Betel.

Then the king commanded Hilkiah the Supreme Priest and all the other priests who assisted him and the men who guarded the entrance to the temple to bring out from the temple all the items that people had been using to worship Baal, the goddess Asherah, and the stars. [After they carried them out, ] they burned all those things outside the city near the Kidron Valley. Then they took all the ashes to Bethel, [because that city was already considered to be desecrated/unholy].

5 Auch entfernte er die Götzenpriester, die die Könige Judas eingesetzt hatten und die auf den Höhen in Judas Städten und in Jerusalems Umgebung räucherten, ebenso die, die dem Baal, der Sonne, dem Mond und den Tierkreisbildern räucherten, sowie dem ganzen Himmelsheer.

There were many pagan priests that the previous kings of Judah had appointed to burn incense on the altars on the tops of hills in Judah. They had been offering sacrifices to Baal, to the sun, the moon, the planets, and the stars. The king stopped them from doing those things.

6 Er schaffte die Aschera aus dem Hause des Herrn vor Jerusalem hinaus ins Kidrontal. Er verbrannte sie im Kidrontale, zermalmte sie zu Staub und warf ihren Staub hier auf die Gräber der gemeinen Leute.

He [commanded that] the statue of the goddess Asherah [be] taken out of the temple. Then they took it outside Jerusalem, down to the Kidron Brook, and burned it. Then they pounded the ashes to powder and scattered that over the graves in the public cemetery.

7 Er vernichtete die Geschenke der Tempeldirnen im Hause des Herrn, wo die Weiber Geschenke für die Aschera webten.

He also destroyed the rooms in the temple where the temple male prostitutes lived. That was where women wove robes that were used to worship the goddess Asherah.

8 Dann ließ er aus Judas Städten alle Priester kommen und verunreinigte die Höhen, auf denen die Priester räucherten, von Geba bis Beerseba. Auch riß er die Höhen der Bocksgestalten nieder am Eingang zum Tor des Stadthauptmanns Josue, links am Stadttor.

Josiah also brought [to Jerusalem] all the priests who were offering sacrifices in the other cities in Judah. He also desecrated the places on the tops of hills where the priests had burned incense [to honor idols], from Geba [in the north] to Beersheba [in the south]. Those priests were not allowed to offer sacrifices in the temple, but they [were allowed to] eat the unleavened bread that the priests [who worked in the temple] ate. He also [commanded that] the altars that were dedicated to the goat demons near the gate built by Joshua, the mayor of Jerusalem, [be] destroyed. Those altars were at the left of the main gate into the city.

9 Die Höhenpriester aber hatten keinen Teil mehr an dem Altar des Herrn zu Jerusalem, sondern mußten inmitten ihrer Brüder gewöhnliches Brot essen.

10 Er verunreinigte auch das Tophet im Hinnomstal, daß keiner mehr seinen Sohn und seine Tochter für den Moloch durchs Feuer führte.

Josiah also desecrated the place named Topheth, in the Hinnom Valley, in order that no one could offer his son or daughter there to be completely burned for a sacrifice to [the god] Molech.

11 Dann beseitigte er die Rosse, die Judas Könige der Sonne aufgestellt hatten, am Eingang ins Haus des Herrn, und zwar bei der Zelle des Kämmerers Netanmelek in den Festungstürmen. Die Wagen der Sonne aber verbrannte er.

He also removed the horses that the [previous] kings of Judah had dedicated to worshiping the sun, and he burned the chariots that were used in that worship. Those horses and chariots were kept in the courtyard outside the temple, near the entrance to the temple, and near the room where [one of Josiah’s] officials, whose name was Nathan-Melech, lived.

12 Die Altäre auf dem Dache am Söller des Achaz, die Judas Könige gemacht hatten, ebenso die Altäre, die Manasse in den beiden Vorhöfen im Hause des Herrn gemacht hatte, brach der König ab und zertrümmerte sie dort. Ihren Schutt warf er in das Kidrontal.

Josiah also commanded his servants to tear down the altars that the previous kings of Judah had built on the roof of the palace, above the room where King Ahaz had stayed. They also tore down the altars that had been built by King Manasseh in the two courtyards outside the temple. He commanded that they be smashed to pieces and thrown down into the Kidron Valley.

13 Auch die Höhen östlich von Jerusalem und südlich vom Ölberg, die Israels König Salomo dem sidonischen Scheusal Astarte, dem moabitischen Scheusal Kamos und dem ammonitischen Greuel Milkom gebaut, verunreinigte der König.

He also commanded that the altars that King Solomon had built east of Jerusalem, south of Olive Tree Hill, be desecrated. Solomon had built them for the worship of the disgusting idols—the [statue of the goddess] Astarte [worshiped by the people in] Sidon [city], Chemosh the god of the Moab people-group, and Molech the god of the Ammon people-group.

14 Auch zerbrach er die Steinmale, fällte die Ascheren und füllte ihre Stelle mit Menschengebeinen an.

They also broke into pieces the stone pillars that the Israeli people worshiped, and cut down the [pillars that honored the goddess] Asherah, and they scattered the ground there with human bones [to desecrate it].

15 Auch den Altar zu Betel, die Höhe, die Nebats Sohn Jeroboam, der Israel zur Sünde verführt, gemacht hatte, auch diesen Altar samt der Höhe brach er ab. Dann verbrannte er die Höhe, zermalmte sie zu Staub und verbrannte die Aschera.

Furthermore, he commanded them to tear down the place of worship at Bethel which had been built by King Jeroboam, the king who persuaded the people of Israel to sin. They tore down the altar. Then they broke its stones into pieces and pounded them to become powder. They also burned the statue [of the goddess] Asherah.

16 Als sich Josias umsah, erblickte er die Gräber, die dort auf dem Berge waren. Da ließ er die Gebeine aus den Gräbern holen, verbrannte sie auf dem Altar und verunreinigte ihn nach des Herrn Wort, das der Gottesmann kundgetan hatte, der diese Dinge verkündete.

Then Josiah looked around and saw some tombs there on the hill. He commanded his men to take the bones out of those tombs and burn them on the altar. By doing that, he desecrated the altar. That was what a prophet had predicted many years before when Jeroboam was standing close to that altar at a festival. Then Josiah looked up and saw the tomb of the prophet who had predicted that.

17 Er fragte: "Was für ein Grabmal sehe ich da?" Da sagten die Leute der Stadt zu ihm: "Das ist das Grab des Gottesmannes, der von Juda gekommen ist und dann diese Dinge, die du tust, über den Altar in Betel verkündete."

Josiah asked, “Whose tomb is that?” The people of Bethel replied, “It is the tomb of the prophet who came from Judah and predicted that these things that you have just now done to this altar would happen.”

18 Er sprach: "Laßt ihn! Niemand beunruhige seine Gebeine!" So retteten seine Gebeine die Gebeine des Propheten, der aus Samaria stammte.

Josiah replied, “Allow his tomb to remain as it is. Do not remove the prophet’s bones from the tomb.” So the people did not remove those bones, or the bones of the other prophet, the one who had come from Samaria.

19 Auch beseitigte Josias alle Höhenhäuser, die in Samarias Städten waren und die Israels Könige zur Kränkung gemacht hatten. Er tat mit ihnen ganz so, wie er in Betel getan.

In every city in Israel, at Josiah’s command, they tore down the shrines that had been built by the previous kings of Israel, which had caused Yahweh to become very angry. He did to all those shrines/altars the same thing that he had done to the altars at Bethel.

20 Er opferte alle Höhenpriester dort auf den Altären und verbrannte darauf Menschengebeine. Dann kehrte er nach Jerusalem heim.

He ordered that all the priests who offered sacrifices on the altars on the tops of hills must be killed on those altars. Then he burned human bones on every one of those altars [to desecrate them]. Then he returned to Jerusalem.

21 Der König befahl nun allem Volke: "Haltet dem Herrn, eurem Gott, ein Passah, wie es in diesem Bundesbuche geschrieben steht!"

Then the king commanded all the people to celebrate the Passover Festival to honor Yahweh their God, which was written in the law of Moses that they should do [every year].

22 Denn ein solches Passah war nicht mehr gehalten worden seit den Tagen der Richter, die Israel gerichtet hatten, noch in irgendeiner Zeit der Könige Israels und Judas.

During all the years that leaders ruled Israel and during all the years that kings had ruled Israel and Judah, they had not celebrated that festival.

23 Erst im achtzehnten Jahre des Königs Josias ward dem Herrn zu Jerusalem das Passah gehalten.

But now, after Josiah had been ruling for almost 18 years, to [honor] Yahweh they celebrated the Passover Festival in Jerusalem.

24 Auch vertilgte Josias die Totenbeschwörer, Zeichendeuter, Teraphim, Götzen, überhaupt alle Scheusale, die im Lande Juda und in Jerusalem zu sehen waren, um die Worte der Lehre auszuführen, die geschrieben waren in dem Buche, das der Priester Chilkia im Hause des Herrn gefunden hatte.

Furthermore, Josiah got rid of all the people in Jerusalem and other places in Judah who practiced sorcery and those who requested the spirits of dead people [to tell them what they should do]. He also removed from Jerusalem and from the other places in Judah all the household idols and all the other idols and abominable things. He did those things in order to obey what had been written in the scroll that Hilkiah had found in the temple.

25 Wie er war vor ihm kein König gewesen, der sich zum Herrn bekehrt hätte, von ganzem Herzen, aus ganzer Seele und aus aller Macht, genau nach Mosis Lehre. Auch nach ihm erstand nicht seinesgleichen.

Josiah was totally devoted to Yahweh. There had never been [in Judah or Israel] a king like him. He obeyed all the laws of Moses. And there has never since then been a king like Josiah.

26 Und dennoch ließ der Herr nicht von seinem heftigen Zorn, der über Juda erglüht war, ob all der Kränkungen, mit denen ihn Manasse gekränkt hatte.

But Yahweh had become extremely angry with the people of Judah because of all the things that [King] Manasseh had done to infuriate him, and he continued to be very angry.

27 Der Herr sprach: "Auch Juda schaffe ich weg von meinem Angesicht, so wie ich Israel hinweggeschafft, und ich verwerfe diese Stadt, die ich erwählt, Jerusalem mitsamt dem Haus, von dem ich sprach: 'Mein Name soll dort sein!'"

He said, “I will do to Judah what I have done to Israel. I will banish the people of Judah, with the result that they will never enter my presence again. And I will reject Jerusalem, the city that I chose [to belong to me], and I will abandon the temple, the place where I said that I [MTY] should be worshiped.”

28 Ist nicht der Rest der Geschichte des Josias und alles, was er sonst getan, im Buche der Geschichte der Judakönige aufgeschrieben?

[If you want to know more about] [RHQ] all the other things that Josiah did, they are written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Judah’.

29 Zu seiner Zeit zog Ägyptens König, Pharao Necho, wegen des Assyrerkönigs zum Euphratstrom. Der König Josias zog ihm nun entgegen. Sobald er ihn aber erblickte, tötete er ihn zu Megiddo.

While Josiah was the king of Judah, King Neco of Egypt led his army north to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah tried to stop the army of Egypt at Megiddo [city], but Josiah was killed in a battle there.

30 Da fuhren ihn seine Diener tot aus Megiddo, brachten ihn nach Jerusalem und begruben ihn in seiner Grabstätte. Da nahm das eingesessene Volk des Josias Sohn Joachaz. Und sie salbten ihn und machten ihn an seines Vaters Statt zum König.

His officials placed his corpse in a chariot and took it back to Jerusalem, where it was buried in his own tomb, a tomb where the other previous kings had not been buried. Then the people of Judah poured [olive] oil on [the head of] Josiah’s son Joahaz, to appoint him to be the new king.

31 Joachaz war dreiundzwanzig Jahre alt, als er König wurde, und drei Monate regierte er zu Jerusalem. Seine Mutter hieß Chamutal und war des Jeremias Tochter aus Libna.

Joahaz was 23 years old when he became the king [of Judah], but he ruled from Jerusalem for [only] three months. His mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah from Libnah [city].

32 Er tat, was dem Herrn mißfiel, ganz wie seine Väter getan.

Joahaz did many things that Yahweh said were evil, just like many of his ancestors had done.

33 Da entsetzte ihn Pharao Necho der Regierung über Jerusalem zu Ribla in der Landschaft Hamat und legte dem Land eine Geldbuße von hundert Talenten Silber und zehn Talenten Gold auf.

King Neco’s [army came from Egypt and captured him and] tied him up with chains and took him as a prisoner to Riblah [town] in Hamath [district], to prevent him from continuing to rule in Jerusalem. Neco forced the people of Judah to pay to him (7,500 pounds/3,400 kg.) of silver and (75 pounds/34 kg.) of gold.

34 Und Pharao Necho machte des Josias Sohn Eljakim an seines Vaters Josias Statt zum König und änderte seinen Namen in Jojakim. Den Joachaz aber nahm er fest. So kam er nach Ägypten und starb hier.

King Neco appointed another son of Josiah, Eliakim, to be the new king, and he changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. Then he took Joahaz to Egypt, and later Joahaz died there in Egypt.

35 Das Gold und Silber aber gab Jojakim dem Pharao. Er aber schätzte das Land ein, um das Geld nach des Pharaos Befehl abliefern zu können. Er hatte beim eingesessenen Volk von jedem je nach der Schätzung das Silber und Gold eingetrieben, um es dem Pharao Necho abzuliefern.

King Jehoiakim collected a tax from the people [of Judah]. He collected more from the rich people and less from the poor people. He collected silver and gold from them, in order to pay to the king of Egypt what he commanded them to give.

36 Jojakim war fünfundzwanzig Jahre alt, als er König wurde, und elf Jahre regierte er zu Jerusalem. Seine Mutter hieß Zebudda und war des Pedaja Tochter aus Ruma.

Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became the king [of Judah], and he ruled from Jerusalem for eleven years. His mother was Zebidah, the daughter of Pedaiah from Rumah [town].

37 Er tat, was dem Herrn mißfiel, ganz wie seine Väter getan hatten.

He did many things that Yahweh says are evil, like his ancestors had done.