Hezekiah Celebrates the Passover

30 Hezekiah sent word to all Israel^(A) and Judah and also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh,^(B) inviting them to come to the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem and celebrate the Passover^(C) to the Lord, the God of Israel. ² The king and his officials and the whole assembly in Jerusalem decided to celebrate^(D) the Passover in the second month. ³ They had not been able to celebrate it at the regular time because not enough priests had consecrated^(E) themselves and the people had not assembled in Jerusalem. ⁴ The plan seemed right both to the king and to the whole assembly. ⁵ They decided to send a proclamation throughout Israel, from Beersheba to Dan,^(F) calling the people to come to Jerusalem and celebrate the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel. It had not been celebrated in large numbers according to what was written.

⁶ At the king’s command, couriers went throughout Israel and Judah with letters from the king and from his officials, which read:

¹⁰ The couriers went from town to town in Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun, but people scorned and ridiculed^(O) them. ¹¹ Nevertheless, some from Asher, Manasseh and Zebulun humbled^(P) themselves and went to Jerusalem.^{(Q) 12} Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity^(R) of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the Lord.

¹³ A very large crowd of people assembled in Jerusalem to celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread^(S) in the second month. ¹⁴ They removed the altars^(T) in Jerusalem and cleared away the incense altars and threw them into the Kidron Valley.^(U)

¹⁵ They slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. The priests and the Levites were ashamed and consecrated^(V) themselves and brought burnt offerings to the temple of the Lord. ¹⁶ Then they took up their regular positions^(W) as prescribed in the Law of Moses the man of God. The priests splashed against the altar the blood handed to them by the Levites. ¹⁷ Since many in the crowd had not consecrated themselves, the Levites had to kill^(X) the Passover lambs for all those who were not ceremonially clean and could not consecrate their lambs^[a] to the Lord. ¹⁸ Although most of the many people who came from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun had not purified themselves,^(Y) yet they ate the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the Lord, who is good, pardon everyone ¹⁹ who sets their heart on seeking God—the Lord, the God of their ancestors—even if they are not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary.” ²⁰ And the Lord heard^(Z) Hezekiah and healed^(AA) the people.^(AB)

²¹ The Israelites who were present in Jerusalem celebrated the Festival of Unleavened Bread^(AC) for seven days with great rejoicing, while the Levites and priests praised the Lord every day with resounding instruments dedicated to the Lord.^[b]

²² Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites, who showed good understanding of the service of the Lord. For the seven days they ate their assigned portion and offered fellowship offerings and praised^[c] the Lord, the God of their ancestors.

²³ The whole assembly then agreed to celebrate^(AD) the festival seven more days; so for another seven days they celebrated joyfully. ²⁴ Hezekiah king of Judah provided^(AE) a thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep and goats for the assembly, and the officials provided them with a thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep and goats. A great number of priests consecrated themselves. ²⁵ The entire assembly of Judah rejoiced, along with the priests and Levites and all who had assembled from Israel^(AF), including the foreigners who had come from Israel and also those who resided in Judah. ²⁶ There was great joy in Jerusalem, for since the days of Solomon^(AG) son of David king of Israel there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem. ²⁷ The priests and the Levites stood to bless^(AH) the people, and God heard them, for their prayer reached heaven, his holy dwelling place.

Jerusalem’s Enemies to Be Destroyed

12 A prophecy:^(A) The word of the Lord concerning Israel.

The Lord, who stretches out the heavens,^(B) who lays the foundation of the earth,^(C) and who forms the human spirit within a person,^(D) declares: ² “I am going to make Jerusalem a cup^(E) that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling.^(F) Judah^(G) will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. ³ On that day, when all the nations^(H) of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock^(I) for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure^(J) themselves. ⁴ On that day I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness,” declares the Lord. “I will keep a watchful eye over Judah, but I will blind all the horses of the nations.^{(K) 5} Then the clans of Judah will say in their hearts, ‘The people of Jerusalem are strong,^(L) because the Lord Almighty is their God.’

⁶ “On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a firepot^(M) in a woodpile, like a flaming torch among sheaves. They will consume^(N) all the surrounding peoples right and left, but Jerusalem will remain intact^(O) in her place.

⁷ “The Lord will save the dwellings of Judah first, so that the honor of the house of David and of Jerusalem’s inhabitants may not be greater than that of Judah.^{(P) 8} On that day the Lord will shield^(Q) those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest^(R) among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God,^(S) like the angel of the Lord going before^(T) them. ⁹ On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations^(U) that attack Jerusalem.^(V)

Mourning for the One They Pierced

¹⁰ “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit^[a](W) of grace and supplication.^(X) They will look on^[b] me, the one they have pierced,^(Y) and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child,^(Z) and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.^{(AA) 11} On that day the weeping^(AB) in Jerusalem will be as great as the weeping of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.^{(AC) 12} The land will mourn,^(AD) each clan by itself, with their wives by themselves: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives, ¹³ the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives, ¹⁴ and all the rest of the clans and their wives.^(AE)

Cleansing From Sin

13 “On that day a fountain^(AF) will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse^(AG) them from sin and impurity.