Hezekiah Reigns over Judah

18 Now it happened ^(A)in the third year of Hoshea, the son of Elah king of Israel, that ^(B)Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah became king. ² He was ^(C)twenty-five years old when he became king; and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Abi, the daughter of Zechariah. ^3 (D)And he did what was right in the sight of Yahweh, according to all that David his father had done. ^4 (E)He took away the high places and shattered the sacred pillars and cut down the ^[a]Asherah. And he broke in pieces ^(F)the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel were burning incense to it; and it was called ^[b]Nehushtan. ^5 (G)He trusted in Yahweh, the God of Israel; ^(H)so that after him there was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among those who were before him. ⁶ So he ^(I)clung to Yahweh; he did not turn away from following Him, but kept His commandments, which Yahweh had commanded Moses.

Hezekiah Prospers

^7 (J)And Yahweh was with him; wherever he went he prospered. And ^(K)he rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. ^8 (L)He struck the Philistines as far as Gaza and its territory, from ^(M)watchtower to fortified city.

⁹ Now in the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, ^(N)Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria and besieged it. ¹⁰ And at the end of three years they captured it; in the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was ^(O)the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was captured. ¹¹ Then the king of Assyria took Israel away into exile to Assyria, and put them in ^(P)Halah and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes, ¹² because they ^(Q)did not listen to the voice of Yahweh their God, but trespassed against His covenant, even all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded; they would neither listen nor do it.

Sennacherib Comes Up Against Judah

^13 (R)Now in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and seized them. ¹⁴ Then Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “^(S)I have done wrong. Turn away from me; whatever penalty you give to me I will bear.” So the king of Assyria set a penalty on Hezekiah king of Judah ^[c]three hundred talents of silver and ^[d]thirty talents of gold. ^15 (T)Thus Hezekiah gave him all the silver which was found in the house of Yahweh and in the treasuries of the king’s house. ¹⁶ At that time Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the temple of Yahweh and from the doorposts, which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.

¹⁷ Then the king of Assyria sent ^(U)Tartan and Rab-saris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah with a heavy military force to Jerusalem. So they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they went up, they came and stood by the ^(V)conduit of the upper pool, which is on the highway of the ^[e]fuller’s field. ¹⁸ Then they called to the king, and ^(W)Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and ^(X)Shebnah the scribe and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, came out to them.

¹⁹ Then Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria, “^(Y)What is this trust that you have? ²⁰ You say (but they are ^[f]only empty words), ‘I have counsel and might for the war.’ Now on whom do you trust, ^(Z)that you have rebelled against me? ²¹ Now behold, you ^[g](AA)trust in the staff of this crushed reed, even on Egypt; on which if a man leans, it will go into his ^[h]hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him. ²² But if you say to me, ‘We trust in Yahweh our God,’ is it not He whose high places and ^(AB)whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem’? ²³ So now, ^[i]come, make a bargain with my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to give riders for them. ²⁴ How then can you ^[j]turn away one ^[k]official of the least of my master’s servants, and trust in Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? ²⁵ So now, have I come up ^[l]without the approval of Yahweh against this place to make it a ruin? Yahweh said to me, ‘Go up against this land and make it a ruin.’”’”

²⁶ Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebnah and Joah, said to Rabshakeh, “Speak now to your servants in Aramaic, for we ^[m]understand it; and do not speak with us in ^[n](AC)Judean in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.” ²⁷ But Rabshakeh said to them, “Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, doomed to eat their own dung and drink their own urine with you?”

²⁸ Then Rabshakeh stood and cried with a loud voice in Judean, ^[o]saying, “Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. ²⁹ Thus says the king, ‘^(AD)Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you from ^[p]his hand; ³⁰ and do not let Hezekiah make you trust in Yahweh, saying, “Yahweh will surely deliver us, and this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ³¹ Do not listen to Hezekiah, for thus says the king of Assyria, “^[q]Make your peace with me and come out to me, and eat ^(AE)each of his vine and each of his fig tree and drink each of the waters of his own cistern, ³² until I come and take you away ^(AF)to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive oil and honey, that you may live and not die.” But do not listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you, saying, “Yahweh will deliver us.” ^33 (AG)Has any one of the gods of the nations delivered his land from the hand of the king of Assyria? ^34 (AH)Where are the gods of Hamath and ^(AI)Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and ^[r](AJ)Ivvah? When have they delivered Samaria from my hand? ³⁵ Who among all the gods of the lands ^[s]have delivered their land from my hand, ^(AK)that Yahweh would deliver Jerusalem from my hand?’”

³⁶ But the people were silent and answered him not a word, for the king’s commandment was, “Do not answer him.” ³⁷ Then ^(AL)Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah ^(AM)with their clothes torn and told him the words of Rabshakeh.

Isaiah Tells Hezekiah Not to Be Afraid

19 ^(AN)Now it happened that when King Hezekiah heard it, he ^(AO)tore his clothes, ^(AP)covered himself with sackcloth, and entered the house of Yahweh. ² Then he sent Eliakim who was over the household with Shebna the scribe and the elders of the priests, ^(AQ)covered with sackcloth, to ^(AR)Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz. ³ And they said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah, ‘This day is a day of distress, reproof, and rejection; for children have come to the point of breaking forth, but there is no strength to give birth. ^4 (AS)Perhaps Yahweh your God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent ^(AT)to ^[t]reproach the living God, and will reprove the words which Yahweh your God has heard. Therefore, lift up a prayer for ^(AU)the remnant that is left.’” ⁵ So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. ⁶ And Isaiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to your master, ‘Thus says Yahweh, “Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the ^(AV)young men of the king of Assyria ^(AW)have blasphemed Me. ⁷ Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that ^(AX)he will hear a report and return to his own land. And ^(AY)I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.”’”

Sennacherib Deceives Hezekiah

⁸ Then Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against ^(AZ)Libnah, for he had heard that ^[u]the king had set out from ^(BA)Lachish. ⁹ Then he heard them say concerning Tirhakah king of ^[v]Ethiopia, “Behold, he has come out to fight against you.” So he sent messengers again to Hezekiah saying, ¹⁰ “Thus you shall say to Hezekiah king of ^[w]Judah, ‘Do not ^(BB)let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “^(BC)Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ¹¹ Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, devoting them to destruction. So will you be delivered? ^12 (BD)Did the gods of ^[x]those nations which my fathers brought to ruin deliver them, even ^(BE)Gozan and ^(BF)Haran and Rezeph and ^(BG)the sons of Eden who were in Telassar? ^13 (BH)Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Hena and Ivvah?’”

Hezekiah’s Prayer

¹⁴ Then ^(BI)Hezekiah took the ^[y]letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of Yahweh and ^[z]spread it out before Yahweh. ¹⁵ And Hezekiah prayed before Yahweh and said, “O Yahweh, the God of Israel, ^(BJ)who is ^[aa]enthroned above the cherubim, ^(BK)You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. ^16 (BL)Incline Your ear, O Yahweh, and hear; ^(BM)open Your eyes, O Yahweh, and see; and listen to the words of Sennacherib, who sent them ^(BN)to ^[ab]reproach the living God. ¹⁷ Truly, O Yahweh, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands ¹⁸ and have put their gods into the fire, ^(BO)for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. ¹⁹ But now, O Yahweh our God, I pray, save us from his hand ^(BP)that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, O ^(BQ)Yahweh, are God.”

Isaiah Speaks of Sennacherib’s Fall

²⁰ Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah saying, “Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria, ^(BR)I have heard you.’ ²¹ This is the word that Yahweh has spoken against him:

²⁹ ‘Then this shall be ^(CG)the sign for you: ^[ak]you will eat this year what grows of its own accord, in the second year what springs from the same, and in the third year sow, reap, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. ^30 (CH)And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. ³¹ For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant, and ^(CI)out of Mount Zion ^[al]survivors. ^(CJ)The zeal of ^[am]Yahweh will do this.

³² ‘Therefore thus says Yahweh concerning the king of Assyria, “^(CK)He will not come to this city or shoot an arrow there; and he will not come before it with a shield or throw up a siege ramp against it. ^33 (CL)By the way that he came, by the same he will return, and he shall not come to this city,”’ declares Yahweh. ³⁴ ‘^(CM)Indeed I will defend this city to save it for My own sake and ^(CN)for My servant David’s sake.’”

^35 (CO)Now it happened that night, that the angel of Yahweh went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And the ^[an]men arose early in the morning, and behold, all of ^[ao]them were dead bodies. ³⁶ So ^(CP)Sennacherib king of Assyria set out and went away and returned home and lived at ^(CQ)Nineveh. ³⁷ Now it happened that as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, ^[ap](CR)Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword; and they escaped into ^(CS)the land of Ararat. And ^(CT)Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.

Hezekiah’s Illness and Restoration

20 ^(CU)In those days Hezekiah became ill to the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘^(CV)Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’” ² Then he turned his face to the wall and prayed to Yahweh, saying, ³ “^(CW)Remember now, O Yahweh, I beseech You, ^(CX)how I have walked before You in truth and with a whole heart and have done what is good in Your sight.” And ^(CY)Hezekiah wept ^[aq]greatly. ⁴ Now it happened that Isaiah had not gone out of the middle court, and the word of Yahweh came to him, saying, ⁵ “Return and say to ^(CZ)Hezekiah the ruler of My people, ‘Thus says Yahweh, the God of your father David, “^(DA)I have heard your prayer, ^(DB)I have seen your tears; behold, I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of Yahweh. ⁶ And I will add fifteen years to your ^[ar]life, and I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and ^(DC)I will defend this city for My own sake and for My servant David’s sake.”’” ⁷ Then Isaiah said, “Take a cake of figs.” And they took and laid it on the boil, and he was restored to life.

⁸ Now Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “What will be the sign that Yahweh will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of Yahweh the third day?” ⁹ And Isaiah said, “^(DD)This shall be the sign to you from Yahweh, that Yahweh will do the thing that He has spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten steps or turn back ten steps?” ¹⁰ So ^[as]Hezekiah ^[at]answered, “It is easy for the shadow to stretch forward ten steps; no, but let the shadow turn backward ten steps.” ¹¹ Isaiah the prophet cried to Yahweh, and ^(DE)He turned the shadow on the ^[au]stairway back ten steps by which it had gone down on the ^[av]stairway of Ahaz.

Hezekiah Shows Babylon His Treasures

^12 (DF)At that time ^[aw]Berodach-baladan a son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. ¹³ And Hezekiah listened to them, and showed them ^(DG)all his treasure house, the silver and the gold and the spices and the good oil and the house of his armor and all that was found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his house nor in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them. ¹⁴ Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where have they come to you?” And Hezekiah said, “They have come from a far country, from Babylon.” ¹⁵ And he said, “What have they seen in your house?” So Hezekiah said, “They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasuries that I have not shown them.”

¹⁶ Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of Yahweh. ¹⁷ ‘Behold, the days are coming when ^(DH)all that is in your house, and all that your fathers have treasured up to this day will be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says Yahweh. ¹⁸ ‘And some ^(DI)of your sons who will issue from you, whom you will beget, will be taken away; and they will become ^(DJ)officials in the palace of the king of Babylon.’” ¹⁹ Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of Yahweh which you have spoken is ^(DK)good.” For he said, “Will it not be good, if there will be peace and truth in my days?”

^20 (DL)Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah and all his might, and how he ^(DM)made the pool and the conduit and brought water into the city, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? ^21 (DN)So Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and Manasseh his son became king in his place.

Hezekiah Reigns over Judah

29 ^(A)Hezekiah became king when he was twenty-five years old; and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah. ^2 (B)And he did what was right in the sight of Yahweh, according to all that David his father had done.

³ In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he ^(C)opened the doors of the house of Yahweh and repaired them. ⁴ And he brought in the priests and the Levites and gathered them into the square on the east.

Hezekiah Sets the House of God as Holy

⁵ Then he said to them, “Listen to me, O Levites. ^(D)Set yourselves apart now as holy, and set apart as holy the house of Yahweh, the God of your fathers, and bring out the impurity from the holy place. ⁶ For our fathers have been unfaithful and have done what is evil in the sight of Yahweh our God, and have forsaken Him and ^(E)turned their faces away from the dwelling place of Yahweh, and have ^[a]turned their backs. ⁷ They have also ^(F)shut the doors of the porch and put out the lamps, and have not burned incense or offered burnt offerings in the holy place to the God of Israel. ⁸ Therefore ^(G)the wrath of Yahweh was against Judah and Jerusalem, and He has made them an object of terror, of horror, and of ^(H)hissing, as you see with your own eyes. ⁹ And behold, ^(I)our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity for this. ¹⁰ Now it is in my heart ^(J)to cut a covenant with Yahweh, the God of Israel, that His burning anger may turn away from us. ¹¹ My sons, do not be at ease now, for ^(K)Yahweh has chosen you to stand before Him, to minister to Him, and to be His ministers and offer offerings up in smoke.”

¹² Then the Levites arose:

¹⁵ And they gathered their brothers, ^(N)set themselves apart as holy, and went in ^(O)to cleanse the house of Yahweh, according to the commandment of the king ^(P)by the words of Yahweh. ¹⁶ So the priests went in to the inner part of the house of Yahweh to cleanse it, and every unclean thing which they found in the temple of Yahweh they brought out to the court of the house of Yahweh. Then the Levites received it to bring out to ^(Q)the Kidron ^[d]valley, to an outer area. ¹⁷ Then they began ^[e]to set it apart as holy ^(R)on the first day of the first month, and on the eighth day of the month they entered the porch of Yahweh. Then they set apart the house of Yahweh as holy in eight days, and completed it on the sixteenth day of the first month. ¹⁸ Then they went in to King Hezekiah and said, “We have cleansed the whole house of Yahweh, the altar of burnt offering with all of its utensils, and the table of showbread with all of its utensils. ¹⁹ Moreover, ^(S)all the utensils which King Ahaz had rejected during his reign in his unfaithfulness, we have prepared and set apart as holy; and behold, they are before the altar of Yahweh.”

Hezekiah Brings an Offering

²⁰ Then King Hezekiah arose early and gathered the princes of the city and went up to the house of Yahweh. ²¹ And they brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats ^(T)for a sin offering for the kingdom, the sanctuary, and Judah. And he ordered the priests, the sons of Aaron, to offer them on the altar of Yahweh. ²² So they slaughtered the bulls, and the priests took the blood and splashed it on the altar. They also slaughtered the rams and splashed the blood on the altar; they slaughtered the lambs also and ^(U)splashed the blood on the altar. ²³ Then they had the male goats of the sin offering approach before the king and the assembly, and ^(V)they laid their hands on them. ²⁴ And the priests slaughtered them and purged the altar with their blood ^(W)to atone for all Israel, for the king ordered the burnt offering and the sin offering for all Israel.

^25 (X)He then caused the Levites to stand in the house of Yahweh with cymbals, with harps, and with lyres, ^(Y)according to the command of David and of ^(Z)Gad the king’s seer, and of ^(AA)Nathan the prophet; for the command was from Yahweh by the hand of His prophets. ²⁶ And the Levites stood with ^(AB)the musical instruments of David, and ^(AC)the priests with the trumpets. ²⁷ Then Hezekiah said to offer the burnt offering on the altar. When the burnt offering began, ^(AD)the song to Yahweh also began with the trumpets, ^[f]accompanied by the instruments of David, king of Israel. ²⁸ While the whole assembly worshiped, the singers also sang and the trumpets sounded; all this continued until the burnt offering was completed.

²⁹ Now at the completion of the burnt offerings, ^(AE)the king and all who were present with him bowed down and worshiped. ³⁰ Moreover, King Hezekiah and the officials ordered the Levites to sing praises to Yahweh with the words of David and Asaph the seer. ^(AF)So they sang praises with gladness, and bowed down and worshiped.

³¹ Then Hezekiah answered and said, “^(AG)Now that you have ^[g]become ordained to Yahweh, approach and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the house of Yahweh.” And the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and ^(AH)all those who were willing of heart brought burnt offerings. ³² And the number of the burnt offerings which the assembly brought was 70 bulls, 100 rams, and 200 lambs; all these were for a burnt offering to Yahweh. ³³ And the holy things were 600 bulls and 3,000 sheep. ³⁴ But the priests were too few, so that they were unable to skin all the burnt offerings; ^(AI)therefore their brothers the Levites helped them until the work was completed and until the other priests had set themselves apart as holy. For ^(AJ)the Levites were more upright of heart to set themselves apart as holy than the priests. ³⁵ There were also ^[h](AK)many burnt offerings with ^(AL)the fat of the peace offerings and with ^(AM)the drink offerings for the burnt offerings. Thus the service of the house of Yahweh was established again. ³⁶ Then Hezekiah and all the people were glad over what God had prepared for the people, because the thing came about suddenly.

Hezekiah Celebrates the Passover

30 And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of Yahweh at Jerusalem to ^[i]celebrate the Passover to Yahweh, the God of Israel. ² And the king and his princes and all the assembly in Jerusalem had taken counsel ^(AN)to celebrate the Passover in the second month, ³ since they could not celebrate it ^(AO)at that time, because the priests had not set themselves apart as holy in sufficient numbers, nor had the people been gathered to Jerusalem. ⁴ Thus the thing was right in the eyes of the king and in the eyes of all the assembly. ⁵ So they established a decree to make a ^[j]proclamation pass throughout all Israel ^(AP)from Beersheba even to Dan, that they should come to celebrate the Passover to Yahweh, the God of Israel, at Jerusalem. For they had not celebrated it in great numbers as it was written. ^6 (AQ)And the ^[k]couriers went throughout all Israel and Judah with the letters from the hand of the king and his princes, even according to the commandment of the king, saying, “O sons of Israel, return to Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, that He may return to those of you who escaped and remain from ^(AR)the ^[l]hand of the kings of Assyria. ^7 (AS)Now do not be like your fathers and your brothers, who were unfaithful to Yahweh, the God of their fathers, so that ^(AT)He made them an object of horror, as you see. ⁸ Now do not ^(AU)stiffen your neck like your fathers, but give your hand to Yahweh and enter His sanctuary which He has set apart as holy forever, and serve Yahweh your God, ^(AV)that His burning anger may turn away from you. ⁹ For ^(AW)when you return to Yahweh, your brothers and your sons will find compassion before those who led them captive and will return to this land. ^(AX)For Yahweh your God is gracious and compassionate, and will not turn His face away from you if you return to Him.”

¹⁰ So the ^[m]couriers passed from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun, but ^(AY)they were laughing at them to scorn and mocking them. ¹¹ Nevertheless ^(AZ)some men of Asher, Manasseh and Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. ¹² The ^(BA)hand of God was also on Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes commanded by the word of Yahweh.

¹³ Now many people were gathered at Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread ^(BB)in the second month, a very large assembly. ¹⁴ And they arose and took away the altars which were in Jerusalem; they also ^(BC)took away all the incense altars and ^(BD)cast them into the brook Kidron. ¹⁵ Then ^(BE)they slaughtered the Passover lambs on the fourteenth of the second month. And ^(BF)the priests and Levites were ashamed of themselves, and set themselves apart as holy and brought burnt offerings to the house of Yahweh. ^16 (BG)And they stood at their stations according to the legal judgment for them, according to the law of Moses the man of God; the priests splashed the blood which they received from the hand of the Levites. ¹⁷ For there were many in the assembly who had not set themselves apart as holy; therefore, ^(BH)the Levites were over the slaughter of the Passover lambs for everyone who was unclean, in order to set them apart as holy to Yahweh. ¹⁸ For a multitude of the people, ^(BI)even many from Ephraim and Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, ^(BJ)yet they ate the Passover ^(BK)otherwise than what was written. For Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May Yahweh, who is good, atone ^19 (BL)for everyone who prepares his heart to seek God, Yahweh, the God of his fathers, though not according to the rules of cleansing of the sanctuary.” ²⁰ So Yahweh heard Hezekiah and ^(BM)healed the people. ²¹ And the sons of Israel present in Jerusalem ^(BN)celebrated the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with great gladness, and the Levites and the priests praised Yahweh day after day with loud instruments to Yahweh. ²² Then Hezekiah ^(BO)spoke to the hearts of all the Levites who showed good insight in the things of Yahweh. So they ate for the appointed seven days, sacrificing peace offerings and ^(BP)giving thanks to Yahweh, the God of their fathers.

²³ Then the whole assembly ^(BQ)took counsel to determine to celebrate the feast another seven days, so they celebrated the seven days with gladness. ²⁴ For ^(BR)Hezekiah king of Judah had contributed to the assembly 1,000 bulls and 7,000 sheep, and the princes had contributed to the assembly 1,000 bulls and 10,000 sheep; and ^(BS)a large number of priests set themselves apart as holy. ²⁵ And all the assembly of Judah were glad, with the priests and the Levites and ^(BT)all the assembly that came from Israel, both the sojourners who came from the land of Israel and those living in Judah. ²⁶ So there was great gladness in Jerusalem, because there was nothing like this in Jerusalem ^(BU)since the days of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel. ²⁷ Then ^(BV)the Levitical priests arose and ^(BW)blessed the people; and their voice was heard and their prayer came to ^(BX)His holy habitation, to heaven.

31 Now when all this was completed, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah, ^(BY)shattered the pillars, cut the ^[n]Asherim in pieces, and tore down the high places and the altars throughout all Judah and Benjamin, as well as in Ephraim and Manasseh, until the destruction was completed. Then all the sons of Israel returned to their cities, each to his possession.

Hezekiah Sets Up Priests for Service

² And Hezekiah set up ^(BZ)the divisions of the priests and the Levites by their divisions, each according to his service, both the priests and the Levites, ^(CA)for burnt offerings and for peace offerings, to minister and to give thanks and to praise in the gates of the camp of Yahweh. ³ He also appointed ^(CB)the king’s portion of his goods for the burnt offerings, namely, for the morning and evening burnt offerings, and the burnt offerings for the sabbaths and for the new moons and for the appointed times, ^(CC)as it is written in the law of Yahweh. ⁴ Also he said to the people who lived in Jerusalem to give ^(CD)the portion due to the priests and the Levites, that they might be strong in ^(CE)the law of Yahweh. ⁵ As soon as the word spread forth, the sons of Israel provided in abundance the first fruits of grain, new wine, oil, honey, and of all the produce of the field; and they brought in abundantly ^(CF)the tithe of all. ⁶ Now the sons of Israel and Judah who lived in the cities of Judah also brought in the tithe of oxen and sheep, and ^(CG)the tithe of the holy gifts which were made holy to Yahweh their God, and put them in heaps. ⁷ In the third month they began to ^[o]make the heaps, and completed them by the seventh month. ⁸ Then Hezekiah and the rulers came and saw the heaps, and they blessed Yahweh and ^(CH)His people Israel. ⁹ Then Hezekiah inquired of the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps. ¹⁰ And Azariah the chief priest ^(CI)of the house of Zadok said to ^[p]him, “^(CJ)Since the contributions began to be brought into the house of Yahweh, there has been much to eat and be satisfied with and have left over, for Yahweh has blessed His people, and this great quantity is left over.”

¹¹ Then Hezekiah ordered them to prepare ^(CK)rooms in the house of Yahweh, and they prepared them. ¹² And they faithfully brought in the contribution and the tithe and the holy things; and Conaniah the Levite was the officer over ^(CL)them and his brother Shimei was second. ¹³ Now Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were overseers ^[q]assisting at the hand of Conaniah and Shimei his brother by the appointment of King Hezekiah, and ^(CM)Azariah was the chief officer of the house of God. ¹⁴ And Kore the son of Imnah the Levite, the keeper of the eastern gate, was over the freewill offerings of God, to distribute the contributions for Yahweh and the most holy things. ¹⁵ Now assisting ^[r]by his hand were ^(CN)Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah in ^(CO)the cities of the priests, to distribute faithfully their portions to their brothers by divisions, whether great or small, ¹⁶ without regard to their genealogical record, to the males from ^[s](CP)thirty years old and upward—everyone who entered the house of Yahweh ^(CQ)for his daily obligations—for their service in their responsibilities according to their divisions; ¹⁷ as well as the priests who were recorded genealogically according to their fathers’ households, and the Levites ^(CR)from twenty years old and upwards, by their responsibilities and their divisions. ¹⁸ The genealogical record included ^[t]all their little ones, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, for the whole assembly, for they set themselves apart ^[u]faithfully in holiness. ¹⁹ Also for the sons of Aaron the priests who were in ^(CS)the pasture lands of their cities, or in each and every city, ^(CT)there were men who were designated by name to distribute portions to every male among the priests and to everyone genealogically recorded among the Levites.

²⁰ Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah; and ^(CU)he did what was good, right, and true before Yahweh his God. ²¹ And every work which he began in the service of the house of God in law and in commandment—to seek his God—he did with all his heart and ^(CV)succeeded.

Sennacherib Invades Judah

32 After these ^[v]acts of faithfulness ^(CW)Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah and encamped against the fortified cities, and ^[w]thought to break into them for himself. ² Then Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he had set his face to make war on Jerusalem, ³ and he took counsel with his commanders and his warriors to stop up the supply of water from the springs which were outside the city, and they helped him. ⁴ So many people gathered ^(CX)and stopped up all the springs and ^(CY)the stream which flowed in the midst of the land, saying, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find abundant water?” ⁵ And he strengthened himself and ^(CZ)rebuilt all the wall that had been broken down and ^[x]erected towers on it, and built ^(DA)another outside wall and strengthened the ^[y](DB)Millo in the city of David, and made weapons and shields in great number. ⁶ He also put military commanders over the people and gathered them to him in the square at the city gate, and ^(DC)spoke to their hearts, saying, ⁷ “^(DD)Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be dismayed because of the king of Assyria nor because of all the multitude that is with him; ^(DE)for the one with us is greater than the one with him. ⁸ With him is only ^(DF)an arm of flesh, but ^(DG)with us is Yahweh our God to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people were sustained by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

Sennacherib Reproaches Yahweh

⁹ After this ^(DH)Sennacherib king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem while he was ^[z]besieging Lachish with all his forces with him, against Hezekiah king of Judah and against all Judah who were at Jerusalem, saying, ¹⁰ “Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria, ‘On what are you trusting that you are remaining in Jerusalem under siege? ¹¹ Is not Hezekiah inciting you to give yourselves over to die by hunger and by thirst, saying, “Yahweh our God will deliver us from the ^[aa]hand of the king of Assyria”? ^12 (DI)Has not the same Hezekiah taken away His high places and His altars, and said to Judah and ^[ab]Jerusalem, “You shall worship before one altar, and on it you shall offer offerings up in smoke”? ¹³ Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of the lands? ^(DJ)Were the gods of the nations of the lands able at all to deliver their land from my hand? ^14 (DK)Who was there among all the gods of these nations which my fathers devoted to destruction, who could deliver his people from my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you from my hand? ¹⁵ So now, do not let Hezekiah deceive you or incite you like this, and do not believe him, for ^(DL)no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people from my hand or from the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you from my hand?’”

¹⁶ His servants spoke further against Yahweh God and against His servant Hezekiah. ¹⁷ He also wrote letters to ^[ac]reproach Yahweh, the God of Israel, and to speak against Him, saying, “^(DM)As the gods of the nations of the lands ^[ad]have not delivered their people from my hand, so the God of Hezekiah will not deliver His people from my hand.” ^18 (DN)And they called this out with a loud voice in the language of Judah to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to instill fear and terrify them, so that they might capture the city. ¹⁹ And they spoke ^[ae]of the God of Jerusalem as of ^(DO)the gods of the peoples of the earth, the work of men’s hands.

Yahweh Wipes Out the Men of Assyria

²⁰ But King Hezekiah and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, prayed about this and cried out to heaven. ²¹ And Yahweh sent an angel who wiped out every mighty man of valor, ruler, and commander in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned ^[af]in shame to his own land. And he entered the house of his god, and some of ^[ag]his own children caused him to fall there by the sword. ²² So Yahweh ^(DP)saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria and from the hand of all others, and He ^[ah]guided them on every side. ²³ And ^(DQ)many were bringing presents to Yahweh at Jerusalem and precious things to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that ^(DR)he was lifted up in the sight of all nations thereafter.

^24 (DS)In those days Hezekiah became sick to the point of death; and he prayed to Yahweh, and ^[ai]Yahweh spoke to him and gave him a miraculous sign. ²⁵ But Hezekiah gave no return for the benefit ^[aj]he received, ^(DT)because his heart was ^[ak]proud; ^(DU)therefore wrath came on him and on Judah and Jerusalem. ²⁶ However, ^(DV)Hezekiah ^[al]humbled the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of Yahweh did not come on them in the days of Hezekiah.

²⁷ Now Hezekiah had abundant riches and honor; and he made for himself treasuries for silver, gold, precious stones, spices, shields, and all kinds of desirable articles, ²⁸ storehouses also for the produce of grain, wine, and oil, stalls for all kinds of cattle, and ^[am]sheepfolds for the flocks. ²⁹ He also made cities for himself and acquired flocks and herds in abundance, for ^(DW)God had given him exceedingly abundant ^[an]wealth. ³⁰ And it was Hezekiah who ^(DX)stopped the upper outlet of the waters of ^(DY)Gihon and directed them to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah succeeded in all that he did. ³¹ Even in the matter of ^(DZ)the envoys of the rulers of Babylon, who sent to him to inquire of ^(EA)the miraculous sign that had happened in the land, God left him alone only ^(EB)to test him, that He might know all that was in his heart.

³² Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah and his deeds of lovingkindness, behold, they are written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel. ³³ So Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the ^[ao]upper section of the tombs of the sons of David; and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem ^(EC)honored him at his death. And Manasseh his son became king in his place.

Calamity in Israel and Judah

1 The ^(A)word of ^[a]Yahweh which came to ^(B)Micah of Moresheth in the days of ^(C)Jotham, ^(D)Ahaz, and ^(E)Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he beheld concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.