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2 Chronicles 35-36
New American Standard Bible

The Passover Held Again

35 Then Josiah (A)celebrated the Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem, and (B)they slaughtered the Passover animals on the fourteenth day of the first month. 2 He appointed the priests to their offices and (C)encouraged them in the service of the house of the Lord. 3 He also said to (D)the Levites who taught all Israel and who were holy to the Lord, “Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel built; (E)it will not be a burden on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and His people Israel. 4 (F)Prepare yourselves by your fathers’ households in your divisions, according to the writing of David king of Israel and (G)according to the writing of his son Solomon. 5 Furthermore, (H)stand in the holy place according to the sections of the fathers’ households of your countrymen, the [a]lay people, and according to the Levites, by division of a father’s household. 6 Now (I)slaughter the Passover animals, (J)keep one another consecrated, and prepare for your countrymen to act in accordance with the word of the Lord by Moses.”

7 Josiah contributed to the lay people, to all who were present, flocks of lambs and young goats, all for the Passover offerings, numbering thirty thousand, plus three thousand bulls; these were from the king’s property. 8 His officers also contributed a [b]voluntary offering to the people, the priests, and the Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, (K)the officials of the house of God, gave the priests 2,600 from the flocks and three hundred bulls, for the Passover offerings. 9 (L)Conaniah also, and his brothers Shemaiah and Nethanel, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, the officers of the Levites, contributed five thousand from the flocks and five hundred bulls to the Levites for the Passover offerings.

10 So the service was prepared, and (M)the priests stood at their positions and the Levites by their divisions according to the king’s command. 11 [c](N)They slaughtered the Passover animals, and while (O)the priests [d]sprinkled the blood received from their hand, (P)the Levites skinned the animals. 12 Then they removed the burnt offerings so that they might give them to the sections of the fathers’ households of the lay people to present to the Lord, as it is written in the Book of Moses. They did this with the bulls as well. 13 So (Q)they roasted the Passover animals on the fire according to the ordinance, and they boiled (R)the holy things in pots, in kettles, and in pans and carried them quickly to all the lay people. 14 Afterward they prepared for themselves and for the priests, because the priests, the sons of Aaron, were offering the burnt offerings and the fat until night; so the Levites prepared for themselves and for the priests, the sons of Aaron. 15 The singers, the sons of Asaph, were also at their positions (S)according to the command of David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun the king’s seer; and (T)the gatekeepers at each gate did not have to leave their service, because their kinsmen the Levites prepared for them.

16 So all the service of the Lord was prepared on that day to celebrate the Passover, and to offer burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord according to the command of King Josiah. 17 And (U)the sons of Israel who were present celebrated the Passover at that time, and the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days. 18 (V)There had not been a Passover celebrated like it in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet; nor had any of the kings of Israel celebrated such a Passover as Josiah did with the priests, the Levites, all Judah and Israel who were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 19 In the eighteenth year of Josiah’s reign this Passover was celebrated.

Josiah Dies in Battle

20 (W)After all this, when Josiah had set the [e]temple in order, Neco king of Egypt came up to wage war at (X)Carchemish on the Euphrates, and Josiah went out to engage him. 21 But [f]Neco sent messengers to him, saying, “[g](Y)What business do you have with me, King of Judah? I am not coming against you today, but against the house with which I am at war, and God has told me to hurry. For your own sake, stop interfering with God who is with me, so that He does not destroy you.” 22 However, Josiah would not turn [h]away from him, but (Z)disguised himself in order to fight against him; nor did he listen to the words of Neco (AA)from the mouth of God, but he came to wage war on the plain of (AB)Megiddo. 23 The archers shot King Josiah, and the king said to his servants, “Take me away, for I am badly wounded.” 24 So his servants took him out of the chariot and carried him on the second chariot which he had, and brought him to Jerusalem [i]where he died and was buried in the tombs of his fathers. (AC)All Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah. 25 Then (AD)Jeremiah chanted a song of mourning for Josiah. And all the male and female singers speak about Josiah in their songs of mourning to this day. And they made them an ordinance in Israel; behold, they are also written in the Lamentations. 26 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah and his deeds of devotion as written in the Law of the Lord, 27 and his acts, the first to the last, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

Joahaz, Jehoiakim, Then Jehoiachin Rule

36 (AE)Then the people of the land took [j](AF)Joahaz the son of Josiah and made him king in place of his father in Jerusalem. 2 Joahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem. 3 Then the king of Egypt deposed him in Jerusalem, and imposed a fine on the land of [k]a hundred talents of silver and [l]one talent of gold. 4 The king of Egypt made [m]Joahaz’s brother Eliakim king over Judah and Jerusalem, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But (AG)Neco took his brother Joahaz and brought him to Egypt.

5 (AH)Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem; and he did evil in the sight of the Lord his God. 6 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up (AI)against him and (AJ)bound him with bronze chains to take him to Babylon. 7 (AK)Nebuchadnezzar also brought some of the articles of the house of the Lord to Babylon, and he put them in his temple in Babylon. 8 (AL)Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim and [n]the abominations which he committed, and what was found against him, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. And his son Jehoiachin became king in his place.

9 (AM)Jehoiachin was [o]eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned for three months and ten days in Jerusalem. He did evil in the sight of the Lord.

Captivity in Babylon Begun

10 (AN)At the turn of the year King Nebuchadnezzar sent men and had him brought to Babylon with the valuable articles of the house of the Lord; and he made his relative (AO)Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.

Zedekiah Rules in Judah

11 (AP)Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. 12 He did evil in the sight of the Lord his God; (AQ)he did not humble himself (AR)before Jeremiah the prophet [p]who spoke for the Lord. 13 (AS)He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear allegiance by God. But (AT)he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord God of Israel. 14 Furthermore, all the officials of the priests and the people were very unfaithful, following all the abominations of the nations; and they defiled the house of the Lord which He had sanctified in Jerusalem.

15 Yet the Lord, the God of their fathers, (AU)sent word to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place; 16 but they continually (AV)mocked the messengers of God, (AW)despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, (AX)until the wrath of the Lord rose against His people, until there was no remedy. 17 (AY)So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or frail; He handed them all over to him. 18 (AZ)He brought all the articles of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king and his officers, to Babylon. 19 Then (BA)they burned the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its fortified buildings with fire and destroyed all its valuable articles. 20 He (BB)took into exile those who had escaped from the sword to Babylon; and (BC)they were servants to him and to his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia, 21 (BD)to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until (BE)the land had enjoyed its Sabbaths. (BF)All the days of its desolation it kept the Sabbath [q](BG)until seventy years were complete.

Cyrus Permits Return

22 (BH)Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia—in order to fulfill the word of the Lord (BI)by the mouth of Jeremiah—the Lord (BJ)stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia so that he sent a proclamation throughout his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying, 23 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all His people, may the Lord his God be with him; [r]go up then!’”

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 35:5 Lit sons of the people, and so throughout the ch
  2. 2 Chronicles 35:8 Or freewill offering
  3. 2 Chronicles 35:11 I.e., the Levites
  4. 2 Chronicles 35:11 As in LXX; MT sprinkled from their hand
  5. 2 Chronicles 35:20 Lit house
  6. 2 Chronicles 35:21 Lit he
  7. 2 Chronicles 35:21 Lit What to me and to you, an ancient idiom
  8. 2 Chronicles 35:22 Lit his face
  9. 2 Chronicles 35:24 Lit and
  10. 2 Chronicles 36:1 I.e., short form of Jehoahaz
  11. 2 Chronicles 36:3 About 3.75 tons or 3.4 metric tons
  12. 2 Chronicles 36:3 About 75 lb. or 34 kg
  13. 2 Chronicles 36:4 Lit his
  14. 2 Chronicles 36:8 Lit his
  15. 2 Chronicles 36:9 As in LXX and some Heb mss; MT eight years
  16. 2 Chronicles 36:12 Lit from the mouth of the Lord
  17. 2 Chronicles 36:21 Lit to fulfill seventy years
  18. 2 Chronicles 36:23 Lit and he is to go up; i.e., go to Jerusalem
Close NLT

2 Chronicles 35-36
New Living Translation

Josiah Celebrates Passover

35 Then Josiah announced that the Passover of the Lord would be celebrated in Jerusalem, and so the Passover lamb was slaughtered on the fourteenth day of the first month.[a] 2 Josiah also assigned the priests to their duties and encouraged them in their work at the Temple of the Lord. 3 He issued this order to the Levites, who were to teach all Israel and who had been set apart to serve the Lord: “Put the holy Ark in the Temple that was built by Solomon son of David, the king of Israel. You no longer need to carry it back and forth on your shoulders. Now spend your time serving the Lord your God and his people Israel. 4 Report for duty according to the family divisions of your ancestors, following the directions of King David of Israel and the directions of his son Solomon.

5 “Then stand in the sanctuary at the place appointed for your family division and help the families assigned to you as they bring their offerings to the Temple. 6 Slaughter the Passover lambs, purify yourselves, and prepare to help those who come. Follow all the directions that the Lord gave through Moses.”

7 Then Josiah provided 30,000 lambs and young goats for the people’s Passover offerings, along with 3,000 cattle, all from the king’s own flocks and herds. 8 The king’s officials also made willing contributions to the people, priests, and Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, the administrators of God’s Temple, gave the priests 2,600 lambs and young goats and 300 cattle as Passover offerings. 9 The Levite leaders—Conaniah and his brothers Shemaiah and Nethanel, as well as Hashabiah, Jeiel, and Jozabad—gave 5,000 lambs and young goats and 500 cattle to the Levites for their Passover offerings.

10 When everything was ready for the Passover celebration, the priests and the Levites took their places, organized by their divisions, as the king had commanded. 11 The Levites then slaughtered the Passover lambs and presented the blood to the priests, who sprinkled the blood on the altar while the Levites prepared the animals. 12 They divided the burnt offerings among the people by their family groups, so they could offer them to the Lord as prescribed in the Book of Moses. They did the same with the cattle. 13 Then they roasted the Passover lambs as prescribed; and they boiled the holy offerings in pots, kettles, and pans, and brought them out quickly so the people could eat them.

14 Afterward the Levites prepared Passover offerings for themselves and for the priests—the descendants of Aaron—because the priests had been busy from morning till night offering the burnt offerings and the fat portions. The Levites took responsibility for all these preparations.

15 The musicians, descendants of Asaph, were in their assigned places, following the commands that had been given by David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, the king’s seer. The gatekeepers guarded the gates and did not need to leave their posts of duty, for their Passover offerings were prepared for them by their fellow Levites.

16 The entire ceremony for the Lord’s Passover was completed that day. All the burnt offerings were sacrificed on the altar of the Lord, as King Josiah had commanded. 17 All the Israelites present in Jerusalem celebrated Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread for seven days. 18 Never since the time of the prophet Samuel had there been such a Passover. None of the kings of Israel had ever kept a Passover as Josiah did, involving all the priests and Levites, all the people of Jerusalem, and people from all over Judah and Israel. 19 This Passover was celebrated in the eighteenth year of Josiah’s reign.

Josiah Dies in Battle

20 After Josiah had finished restoring the Temple, King Neco of Egypt led his army up from Egypt to do battle at Carchemish on the Euphrates River, and Josiah and his army marched out to fight him.[b] 21 But King Neco sent messengers to Josiah with this message:

“What do you want with me, king of Judah? I have no quarrel with you today! I am on my way to fight another nation, and God has told me to hurry! Do not interfere with God, who is with me, or he will destroy you.”

22 But Josiah refused to listen to Neco, to whom God had indeed spoken, and he would not turn back. Instead, he disguised himself and led his army into battle on the plain of Megiddo. 23 But the enemy archers hit King Josiah with their arrows and wounded him. He cried out to his men, “Take me from the battle, for I am badly wounded!”

24 So they lifted Josiah out of his chariot and placed him in another chariot. Then they brought him back to Jerusalem, where he died. He was buried there in the royal cemetery. And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for him. 25 The prophet Jeremiah composed funeral songs for Josiah, and to this day choirs still sing these sad songs about his death. These songs of sorrow have become a tradition and are recorded in The Book of Laments.

26 The rest of the events of Josiah’s reign and his acts of devotion (carried out according to what was written in the Law of the Lord), 27 from beginning to end—all are recorded in The Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

Jehoahaz Rules in Judah

36 Then the people of the land took Josiah’s son Jehoahaz and made him the next king in Jerusalem.

2 Jehoahaz[c] was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months.

3 Then he was deposed by the king of Egypt, who demanded that Judah pay 7,500 pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold[d] as tribute.

Jehoiakim Rules in Judah

4 The king of Egypt then installed Eliakim, the brother of Jehoahaz, as the next king of Judah and Jerusalem, and he changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. Then Neco took Jehoahaz to Egypt as a prisoner.

5 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God.

6 Then King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and captured it, and he bound Jehoiakim in bronze chains and led him away to Babylon. 7 Nebuchadnezzar also took some of the treasures from the Temple of the Lord, and he placed them in his palace[e] in Babylon.

8 The rest of the events in Jehoiakim’s reign, including all the evil things he did and everything found against him, are recorded in The Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. Then his son Jehoiachin became the next king.

Jehoiachin Rules in Judah

9 Jehoiachin was eighteen[f] years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months and ten days. Jehoiachin did what was evil in the Lord’s sight.

10 In the spring of the year[g] King Nebuchadnezzar took Jehoiachin to Babylon. Many treasures from the Temple of the Lord were also taken to Babylon at that time. And Nebuchadnezzar installed Jehoiachin’s uncle,[h] Zedekiah, as the next king in Judah and Jerusalem.

Zedekiah Rules in Judah

11 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. 12 But Zedekiah did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and he refused to humble himself when the prophet Jeremiah spoke to him directly from the Lord. 13 He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, even though he had taken an oath of loyalty in God’s name. Zedekiah was a hard and stubborn man, refusing to turn to the Lord, the God of Israel.

14 Likewise, all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful. They followed all the pagan practices of the surrounding nations, desecrating the Temple of the Lord that had been consecrated in Jerusalem.

15 The Lord, the God of their ancestors, repeatedly sent his prophets to warn them, for he had compassion on his people and his Temple. 16 But the people mocked these messengers of God and despised their words. They scoffed at the prophets until the Lord’s anger could no longer be restrained and nothing could be done.

The Fall of Jerusalem

17 So the Lord brought the king of Babylon against them. The Babylonians[i] killed Judah’s young men, even chasing after them into the Temple. They had no pity on the people, killing both young men and young women, the old and the infirm. God handed all of them over to Nebuchadnezzar. 18 The king took home to Babylon all the articles, large and small, used in the Temple of God, and the treasures from both the Lord’s Temple and from the palace of the king and his officials. 19 Then his army burned the Temple of God, tore down the walls of Jerusalem, burned all the palaces, and completely destroyed everything of value.[j] 20 The few who survived were taken as exiles to Babylon, and they became servants to the king and his sons until the kingdom of Persia came to power.

21 So the message of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah was fulfilled. The land finally enjoyed its Sabbath rest, lying desolate until the seventy years were fulfilled, just as the prophet had said.

Cyrus Allows the Exiles to Return

22 In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia,[k] the Lord fulfilled the prophecy he had given through Jeremiah.[l] He stirred the heart of Cyrus to put this proclamation in writing and to send it throughout his kingdom:

23 “This is what King Cyrus of Persia says:

“The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build him a Temple at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Any of you who are his people may go there for this task. And may the Lord your God be with you!”

Footnotes

  1. 35:1 This day in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar was April 5, 622 B.c.
  2. 35:20 Or Josiah went out to meet him.
  3. 36:2 Hebrew Joahaz, a variant spelling of Jehoahaz; also in 36:4.
  4. 36:3 Hebrew 100 talents [3,400 kilograms] of silver and 1 talent [34 kilograms] of gold.
  5. 36:7 Or temple.
  6. 36:9 As in one Hebrew manuscript, some Greek manuscripts, and Syriac version (see also 2 Kgs 24:8); most Hebrew manuscripts read eight.
  7. 36:10a Hebrew At the turn of the year. The first day of this year in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar was April 13, 597 B.c.
  8. 36:10b As in parallel text at 2 Kgs 24:17; Hebrew reads brother, or relative.
  9. 36:17 Or Chaldeans.
  10. 36:19 Or destroyed all the valuable articles from the Temple.
  11. 36:22a The first year of Cyrus’s reign over Babylon was 538 B.c.
  12. 36:22b See Jer 25:11-12; 29:10.
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