Hezekiah Restores Temple Worship

²⁰ Then Hezekiah the king rose early and gathered the officials of the city and went up to the house of the Lord. ²¹ And they brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats ^(A)for a sin offering for the kingdom and for the sanctuary and for Judah. And he commanded the priests, the sons of Aaron, to offer them on the altar of the Lord. ²² So they slaughtered the bulls, and the priests received the blood ^(B)and threw it against the altar. And they slaughtered the rams, and their blood was thrown against the altar. And they slaughtered the lambs, and their blood was thrown against the altar. ²³ Then the goats for the sin offering were brought to the king and the assembly, ^(C)and they laid their hands on them, ²⁴ and the priests slaughtered them and made a sin offering with their blood on the altar, ^(D)to make atonement for all Israel. For the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be made for all Israel.

^25 (E)And he stationed the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, harps, and lyres, ^(F)according to the commandment of David and of Gad ^(G)the king's seer and of ^(H)Nathan the prophet, for the commandment was from the Lord through his prophets. ²⁶ The Levites stood with ^(I)the instruments of David, ^(J)and the priests with the trumpets. ²⁷ Then Hezekiah commanded that the burnt offering be offered on the altar. And when the burnt offering began, ^(K)the song to the Lord began also, and the trumpets, accompanied by the instruments of David king of Israel. ²⁸ The whole assembly worshiped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded. All this continued until the burnt offering was finished. ²⁹ When the offering was finished, ^(L)the king and all who were present with him bowed themselves and worshiped. ³⁰ And Hezekiah the king and the officials commanded the Levites to sing praises to the Lord with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed down and worshiped.

³¹ Then Hezekiah said, ^(M)“You have now consecrated yourselves to^[a] the Lord. Come near; bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the house of the Lord.” And the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all who were ^(N)of a willing heart brought burnt offerings.

⁸ For he finds fault with them when he says:^[a]

¹³ In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And ^(F)what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

The Earthly Holy Place

9 Now even the first covenant had regulations for worship and ^(G)an earthly place of holiness. ² For ^(H)a tent^[b] was prepared, the first section, in which were ^(I)the lampstand and ^(J)the table and ^(K)the bread of the Presence.^[c] It is called the Holy Place. ³ Behind ^(L)the second curtain was a second section^[d] called the Most Holy Place, ⁴ having the golden ^(M)altar of incense and ^(N)the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was ^(O)a golden urn holding the manna, and ^(P)Aaron's staff that budded, and ^(Q)the tablets of the covenant. ⁵ Above it were ^(R)the cherubim of glory overshadowing ^(S)the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail.

⁶ These preparations having thus been made, ^(T)the priests go regularly into the first section, performing their ritual duties, ⁷ but into the second only ^(U)the high priest goes, and he but ^(V)once a year, and not without taking blood, ^(W)which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people. ⁸ By this the Holy Spirit indicates that ^(X)the way into the holy places is not yet opened as long as the first section is still standing ⁹ (which is symbolic for the present age).^[e] According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered ^(Y)that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, ¹⁰ but deal only with ^(Z)food and drink and ^(AA)various washings, regulations for the body imposed until the time of reformation.