Josiah Keeps the Passover

35 ^(A)Josiah kept a Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem. And they slaughtered the Passover lamb ^(B)on the fourteenth day of the first month. ² He appointed the priests to their offices ^(C)and encouraged them in the service of the house of the Lord. ³ And he said to the Levites ^(D)who taught all Israel and who were holy to the Lord, “Put the holy ark in the house that Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, built. You need not carry it on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and his people Israel. ⁴ Prepare yourselves ^(E)according to your fathers' houses by your divisions, ^(F)as prescribed in the writing of David king of Israel ^(G)and the document of Solomon his son. ⁵ And ^(H)stand in the Holy Place ^(I)according to the groupings of the fathers' houses of your brothers the lay people, and according to the division of the Levites by fathers' household. ⁶ And slaughter the Passover lamb, and ^(J)consecrate yourselves, and prepare for your brothers, to do according to the word of the Lord by^[a] Moses.”

⁷ Then Josiah contributed to the lay people, as Passover offerings for all who were present, lambs and young goats from the flock to the number of 30,000, and 3,000 bulls; ^(K)these were from the king's possessions.

¹⁶ So all the service of the Lord was prepared that day, to keep the Passover and to offer burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord, according to the command of King Josiah. ¹⁷ And the people of Israel who were present kept the Passover at that time, ^(A)and the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days. ^18 (B)No Passover like it had been kept in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet. 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 who were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ¹⁹ In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah this Passover was kept.

Josiah Killed in Battle

^20 (C)After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Neco king of Egypt went up to fight at ^(D)Carchemish on the Euphrates, and Josiah went out to meet him. ²¹ But he sent envoys to him, saying, “What have we to do with each other, king of Judah? I am not coming against you this day, but against the house with which I am at war. And God has commanded me to hurry. Cease opposing God, who is with me, lest he destroy you.” ²² Nevertheless, Josiah did not turn away from him, but ^(E)disguised himself in order to fight with him. He did not listen to the words of Neco from the mouth of God, but came to fight in the plain of ^(F)Megiddo. ²³ And the archers shot King Josiah. And the king said to his servants, ^(G)“Take me away, for I am badly wounded.” ²⁴ So his servants took him out of the chariot and carried him in his second chariot and brought him to Jerusalem. And he died and was buried in the tombs of his fathers. ^(H)All Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah. ^25 (I)Jeremiah also uttered a lament for Josiah; and all ^(J)the singing men and singing women have spoken of Josiah in their laments to this day. They made these a rule in Israel; behold, they are written in the Laments.