³ In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek the God^(A) of his father David. In his twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of high places, Asherah poles and idols. ⁴ Under his direction the altars of the Baals were torn down; he cut to pieces the incense altars that were above them, and smashed the Asherah poles^(B) and the idols. These he broke to pieces and scattered over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them.^{(C) 5} He burned^(D) the bones of the priests on their altars, and so he purged Judah and Jerusalem. ⁶ In the towns of Manasseh, Ephraim and Simeon, as far as Naphtali, and in the ruins around them, ⁷ he tore down the altars and the Asherah poles and crushed the idols to powder^(E) and cut to pieces all the incense altars throughout Israel. Then he went back to Jerusalem.

² He did evil in the eyes of the Lord,^(A) following the detestable^(B) practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites. ³ He rebuilt the high places his father Hezekiah had demolished; he also erected altars to the Baals and made Asherah poles.^(C) He bowed down^(D) to all the starry hosts and worshiped them. ⁴ He built altars in the temple of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “My Name^(E) will remain in Jerusalem forever.” ⁵ In both courts of the temple of the Lord,^(F) he built altars to all the starry hosts. ⁶ He sacrificed his children^(G) in the fire in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, practiced divination and witchcraft, sought omens, and consulted mediums^(H) and spiritists.^(I) He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger.

⁷ He took the image he had made and put it in God’s temple,^(J) of which God had said to David and to his son Solomon, “In this temple and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my Name forever.