23 And HaMelech sent, and they gathered unto him kol Ziknei Yehudah and of Yerushalayim.

² And HaMelech went up into the Beis Hashem, and kol ish Yehudah and all the inhabitants of Yerushalayim with him, and the Kohanim, and the Nevi’im, and kol HaAm, both katon and gadol; and he read in their ears all the Divrei Sefer HaBrit which was found in the Beis Hashem.

³ And HaMelech stood by HaAmmud, and cut HaBrit before Hashem, to walk after Hashem, and to be shomer mitzvot over His commandments and His edot and His chukkot with all their lev and all their nefesh, to carry out these Divrei HaBrit that were written in this Sefer. And kol HaAm stood [under oath] to HaBrit.

⁴ And HaMelech commanded Chilkiyahu HaKohen HaGadol, and the Kohanei HaMishneh, and the Shomrei HaSaf, to bring forth out of the Heikhal Hashem all the kelim that were made for Ba’al, and for Asherah, and for all the Tzeva HaShomayim; and he burned them outside Yerushalayim in the fields of the Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Beit-El.

⁵ And he did away with hakemarim (the idol priests), whom the Melachim of Yehudah had ordained to burn ketoret in the high places in the towns of Yehudah, and in the places around Yerushalayim; them also that burned ketoret unto Ba’al, to the shemesh, and to the yarei’ach, and to the mazalot (constellations) and to all the Tzeva HaShomayim.

⁶ And he took out the Asherah from the Beis Hashem, outside Yerushalayim, unto the Kidron Valley, and burned it in the Kidron Valley, and ground it to powder, and cast its aphar upon the keverim of the Bnei HaAm [i.e., them that sacrificed unto them].

⁷ And he tore down the batim (houses) of hakedeshim (the male and female cult prostitutes) that were in the Beis Hashem, where the nashim were weaving hangings for Asherah.

⁸ And he brought all the Kohanim out of the towns of Yehudah, and made tameh the high places where the kohanim had burned ketoret, from Geva to Beer Sheva, and broke down the high places at the she’arim (gates) that were at the entrance of the Sha’ar Yehoshua sar Ir, which were on one’s left at the Sha’ar HaIr.

⁹ Nevertheless the kohanim of the high places came not up to the Mizbe’ach Hashem in Yerushalayim, only they did eat of the matzot among their achim.

¹⁰ And he made tameh Tophet, which is in the Gey of the ben Hinnom, that no ish might make his ben or his bat to pass through the eish to Molech.

¹¹ And he took away the susim that the Melachim of Yehudah had dedicated to the shemesh, at the entrance of the Beis Hashem, by the chamber of Natan-Melech the saris, which was in the colonnades, and set eish to merkevot hashemesh.

¹² And the mizbechot that were on the roof of the upper chamber of Achaz, which the Melachim of Yehudah had made, and the mizbechot which Menasheh had made in the two khatzerot of the Beis Hashem, did HaMelech pull down, and remove them from there, and cast the aphar of them into the Kidron Valley.

¹³ And the high places that were before Yerushalayim, which were on the right of the Har HaMashchit, which Sh’lomo Melech Yisroel had built for Ashtoret shikkutz Tzidonim, and for Kemosh shikkutz Mo’av, and for Milcom to’avat Bnei Ammon, did HaMelech make tameh.

¹⁴ And he broke in pieces the matzevot, and cut down the Asherim, and filled their makom with the atzmot adam.

¹⁵ Moreover the mizbe’ach that was at Beit-El, and the high place which Yarov‘am ben Nevat, who caused Yisroel to sin, had made, both that mizbe’ach and the high place did he break down, burn the high place, did grind it to powder, did burn the Asherah.

¹⁶ And as Yoshiyah turned, he saw the keverim that were there in the har, and sent, and took the atzmot out of the keverim, and burned them upon the mizbe’ach, and made it tameh, according to the Devar Hashem which the Ish HaElohim preached, who proclaimed these words [See 1Kgs 13:1-2].

¹⁷ Then he said, What tziyyun (monument, tombtone) is that that I see? And the anshei HaIr told him, It is the kever of the Ish HaElohim, which came from Yehudah, and proclaimed these things that thou hast done against the mizbe’ach of Beit-El [see 1Kgs 13:1-3].

¹⁸ And he said, Let him alone; let no ish disturb his atzmot. So they left his atzmot undisturbed, with the atzmot of the navi that came out of Shomron [see 1Kgs 13:11,31].

¹⁹ And all the batim (houses, shrines) also of the high places that were in the towns of Shomron, which the Melachim of Yisroel had made to provoke Hashem to anger, Yoshiyah removed, and did to them according to all the ma’asim that he had done in Beit-El.

²⁰ And he slaughtered all the kohanim of the high places that were there upon the mizbechot, and burned atzmot adam upon them, and returned to Yerushalayim.

²¹ And HaMelech commanded kol HaAm, saying, Make Pesach unto Hashem Eloheichem, as it is written in the Sefer HaBrit HaZeh.

²² Surely there was not kept such a Pesach from the days of the Shofetim that judged Yisroel, nor in all the days of the Melachim of Yisroel, nor of the Melachim of Yehudah;

²³ But in the eighteenth year of Melech Yoshiyah, wherein this Pesach was kept to Hashem in Yerushalayim.

²⁴ Moreover the mediums with familiar spirits, and the yidonim (spiritists), and the terafim, and the gillulim (idols), and all the shikkutzim that were seen in Eretz Yehudah and in Yerushalayim, did Yoshiyah put away, that he might confirm the Divrei HaTorah which were written in the Sefer that Chilkiyah HaKohen found in the Beis Hashem.

²⁵ And like him was there no Melech before him, that turned to Hashem with all his lev, and with all his nefesh, and with all his me’od (strength), according to all the Torat Moshe; neither after him arose there any like him.

²⁶ Notwithstanding Hashem turned not from the fierceness of His af hagadol (great wrath), wherewith His anger was kindled against Yehudah, because of all the provocations with which Menasheh had provoked him.

²⁷ And Hashem said, I will remove Yehudah also out of My presence, as I have removed Yisroel, and will cast off this ir Yerushalayim which I have chosen, and the Beis of which I said, Shmi sham.

²⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Yoshiyah, and all that he did, are they not written in the Sefer Divrei HaYamim of the Melachim of Yehudah?

²⁹ In his days Pharaoh Nekhoh Melech Mitzrayim went up against Melech Ashur to the river Euphrates; and Melech Yoshiyah went out against him; and he slaughtered him at Megiddo, when he saw him.

³⁰ And his avadim carried him in a merkavah dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Yerushalayim, and buried him in his own kever. And the Am HaAretz took Yehoachaz Ben Yoshiyah, and anointed him, and made him Melech in place of Aviv.

³¹ Yehoachaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned shloshah chodashim in Yerushalayim. And shem immo was Chamutal Bat Yirmeyahu of Livnah.

³² And he did that which was rah in the eyes of Hashem, according to all that his Avot had done.

³³ And Pharaoh Nekhoh put him in chains at Rivlah in Eretz Chamat, that he might not reign in Yerushalayim; and put HaAretz to an ogesh (tribute, fine) of 100 talents of kesef, and a talent of zahav.

³⁴ And Pharaoh Nekhoh made Elyakim Ben Yoshiyah Melech in the place of Yoshiyah Aviv, and changed shmo to Y’hoyakim, and took Yehoachaz away; and he went to Mitzrayim, and died there.

³⁵ And Y’hoyakim gave the kesef and the zahav to Pharaoh; but he taxed HaAretz to give the kesef according to the order of Pharaoh; he exacted the kesef and the zahav of the Am HaAretz of every one according to his tax assessment, to give it unto Pharaoh Nekhoh.

³⁶ Y’hoyakim was 25 years old when he began to reign; and he reigned 11 shanah in Yerushalayim. And shem immo was Zevudah Bat Pedayah of Rumah.

³⁷ And he did that which was rah in the eyes of Hashem, according to all that his Avot had done.

1 In many and various drakhim (ways) Hashem in amolike times (olden times) spoke to the Avot by the Nevi’im.

² At the Ketz HaYamim, Hashem spoke to us by HaBen, whom He appointed Bechor of the Bechorah, Yoresh Kol (Heir of All Things), through whom also Hashem BARAH ES HASHOMAYIM V’ES HA’ARETZ (see Prov 30:4);

³ Who being the Shechinah zohar (brilliance) of Hashem and the exact impress and demut of Hashem’s essential nature, being, and reality, and sustaining everything by his Dvar HaKo’ach, after he made tihur (purification) of chatta’im (sins), sat down at LIMIN ("the right hand" TEHILLIM 110:1) of the Majesty on High.

⁴ He had become as much superior to the malachim as ha-Shem (the Name) Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach has inherited is more fest (excellent) than theirs.

⁵ For to which of the malachim did Hashem ever say, BENI ATAH, ANI HAYOM YELIDTICHA, ("My Son you are; today I have become your Father." TEHILLIM 2:7)? And again, ANI EH’H’YEH LO L’AV V’HU YIHEYEH LI L’BEN ("I will be to Him a Father and He will be to Me as a Son," SHMUEL BAIS 7:14)?

⁶ And again, when Hashem brings HaBechor into the Olam Hazeh, He says, "Let all Hashem’s malachim worship him." [DEVARIM 32:43 TARGUM HA-SHIVIM]

⁷ And of the malachim, Hashem says OSEH MALAKHAV RUCHOT MESHARTAV EISH L’HET ("He makes his angels winds and his servants [ministering angels] flaming fire," TEHILLIM 104:4).

⁸ And Hashem says to HaBen, KIS’AHCHA ELOHIM OLAM VAED SHEVET MISHOR SHEVET MALKHUTECHA ("Your throne, O G-d, will endure for ever and ever, and the scepter of justice is the scepter of your kingdom"‖TEHILLIM 45:7).

⁹ AHAVTA TZEDEK VATISNA RE’SHA, AL KEN MESHAKHACHA ELOHIM, ELOHECHA SHEMEN SASSON MECHAVERECHA ("You loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; on account of this G-d, your G-d, anointed you with the oil of gladness more than your companions"—TEHILLIM 45:8).

¹⁰ And "Atah Adonoi LEFANIM HA’ARETZ YASADETA UMA’ASEH YADECHA SHOMAYIM; HEMMAH YOVEDU V’ATAH TA’AMOD V’KHULAM KABEGED YIVLU KALVUSH TACHALIFEM V’YACHALOFU V’ATAH HU USHENOTECHA LO YITTAMMU" ("You L-rd in the beginning founded the earth and the heavens, the work of your hands;

¹¹ They will perish but you remain and all of them like the garment they will wear out,

¹² Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded, but you are the same and the years of you they never come to an end" TEHILLIM 102:26-28 [25-27]).

¹³ And to which of the malachim has Hashem ever said, "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies as a footstool for your feet"‖TEHILLIM 110:1)?

¹⁴ Are not all RUCHOT [TEHILLIM 104:4] sharet (ministering spirits, malachey hasharet) sent out with the shlichus (mission) to do avodas kodesh service as Hashem’s klei kodesh (ministers) on behalf of the ones being about to inherit Yeshua’at Eloheinu?

2 In considering all this, it is necessary for us to pay far greater attention bifraht (particularly) to the things we have heard, lest from it we may drift away.

² For if the Dvar Hashem which was declared through malachim became firmly established and every peysha (transgression) and averah (disobedience to the commandment) received a gemul tzodek (just retribution), [DEVARIM 33:2, TARGUM HA-SHIVIM]

³ How shall we escape if we neglect so great a Yeshu’at Eloheinu, one that was declared initially through [Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach] Adoneinu, and was confirmed and attested to us by those who heard him,

⁴ While Hashem gave solemn eidus (testimony) through otot u’moftim (signs and wonders) and nifla’ot rabbot (many miracles) and matanot (gifts) of the Ruach Hakodesh distributed according to the ratzon Hashem?

⁵ For Hashem did not subject the Olam Habah, about which we are speaking, to malachim.

⁶ But someone has given solemn eidus (testimony) somewhere, "MAH ENOSH KI TIZKERENU UVEN ADAM KI TIFKEDENU? ("What is Man that You are mindful of him or the Son of Man that You care for him?

⁷ “You made him a lttle lower than the angels and you crowned him with glory and splendor and you made him ruler over the works of your hands"

⁸ KOL SHATAH TACHAT RAGLAV ("Putting everything under his feet" TEHILLIM 8:5-7). Now while Hashem subjected all things to him, he left nothing unsubjected to him, though now we do not yet see all things having been subjected to him.

⁹ But this is what we do see: Yehoshua, for a short time having been "made lower than the angels," has, because of the yissurim (suffering) of mavet (death), been "crowned with KAVOD V’HADAR" ("glory and splendor" TEHILLIM 8:6) in order that by the Chen v’Chesed Hashem on behalf of all he might taste the histalkus of mavet [Isa 53:8].

¹⁰ For it was bekavod (fitting, proper) for him, for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in bringing banim rabbim (many sons) to kavod, to bring to shleimut (perfection, completion) the Rosh (Head) and Mekhonen (Founder) of their Yeshua’at Hashem through yissurim (suffering).

¹¹ For both HaKadosh who makes holy and Kadoshim who are being made holy all have HaAv Echad. It is for this reason Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach is not ashamed to call them Achim,

¹² Saying, "I will declare your Name to my brothers, within the congregation I will praise you"—TEHILLIM 22:23 [22]).

¹³ And again, "I put my bitachon in him" [YESHAYAH 12:2] and again "HINEI ANOCHI V’HAYELADIM ASHER NATAN LI HASHEM ("Here I am and the yeladim whom Hashem gave to me.") [YESHAYAH 8:18]

¹⁴ Therefore, als (since) the yeladim share in the basar vadahm and Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach likewise shared in the same things, that through the histalkus of his mavet he might destroy the one having power over mavet, that is, Hasatan [see Gn ch 3],

¹⁵ And he might release these, as many as through eymat haMavet (terror of Death) were subjected to avdut (slavery) all the days of their existence.

¹⁶ For surely it was not malachim that concerned him, but the zera Avraham Avinu.

¹⁷ And for this reason, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach was obliged to become like the Achim b’Moshiach [2:11] in every respect, that he might become a Kohen Gadol rachaman v’ne’eman before Hashem in order to make kapporah for the chatta’im of HaAm. [Isa 53:8; 49:7]

¹⁸ For, because Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach himself has endured, being tested in the yissurim (sufferings) of his nefesh [YESHAYAH 53:10,11], he is able to come to the ezrah (aid) of the ones being tested.