2 Kings 23
New King James Version
Josiah Restores True Worship(A)
23 Now (B)the king sent them to gather all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem to him. 2 The king went up to the house of the Lord with all the men of Judah, and with him all the inhabitants of Jerusalem—the priests and the prophets and all the people, both small and great. And he (C)read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant (D)which had been found in the house of the Lord.
3 Then the king (E)stood by a pillar and made a (F)covenant before the Lord, to follow the Lord and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people took a stand for the covenant. 4 And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the (G)priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers, to bring (H)out of the temple of the Lord all the articles that were made for Baal, for [a]Asherah, and for all [b]the host of heaven; and he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried their ashes to Bethel. 5 Then he removed the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah and in the places all around Jerusalem, and those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun, to the moon, to the [c]constellations, and to (I)all the host of heaven. 6 And he brought out the (J)wooden[d] image from the house of the Lord, to the Brook Kidron outside Jerusalem, burned it at the Brook Kidron and ground it to (K)ashes, and threw its ashes on (L)the graves of the common people. 7 Then he tore down the ritual [e]booths (M)of the [f]perverted persons that were in the house of the Lord, (N)where the (O)women wove hangings for the wooden image. 8 And he brought all the priests from the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from (P)Geba to Beersheba; also he broke down the high places at the gates which were at the entrance of the Gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were to the left of the city gate. 9 (Q)Nevertheless the priests of the high places did not come up to the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem, (R)but they ate unleavened bread among their brethren.
10 And he defiled (S)Topheth, which is in (T)the Valley of the [g]Son of Hinnom, (U)that no man might make his son or his daughter (V)pass through the fire to Molech. 11 Then he removed the horses that the kings of Judah had [h]dedicated to the sun, at the entrance to the house of the Lord, by the chamber of Nathan-Melech, the officer who was in the court; and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire. 12 The altars that were (W)on the roof, the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which (X)Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, the king broke down and pulverized there, and threw their dust into the Brook Kidron. 13 Then the king defiled the [i]high places that were east of Jerusalem, which were on the [j]south of [k]the Mount of Corruption, which (Y)Solomon king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the people of Ammon. 14 And he (Z)broke in pieces the sacred pillars and cut down the wooden images, and filled their places with the bones of men.
15 Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the [l]high place (AA)which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he broke down; and he burned the high place and crushed it to powder, and burned the wooden image. 16 As Josiah turned, he saw the tombs that were there on the mountain. And he sent and took the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar, and defiled it according to the (AB)word of the Lord which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words. 17 Then he said, “What gravestone is this that I see?”
So the men of the city told him, “It is (AC)the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed these things which you have done against the altar of Bethel.”
18 And he said, “Let him alone; let no one move his bones.” So they let his bones alone, with the bones of (AD)the prophet who came from Samaria.
19 Now Josiah also took away all the [m]shrines of the [n]high places that were (AE)in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke [o]the Lord to anger; and he did to them according to all the deeds he had done in Bethel. 20 (AF)He (AG)executed all the priests of the [p]high places who were there, on the altars, and (AH)burned men’s bones on them; and he returned to Jerusalem.
21 Then the king commanded all the people, saying, (AI)“Keep the Passover to the Lord your God, (AJ)as it is written in this Book of the Covenant.” 22 (AK)Such a Passover surely had never been held since the days of the judges who judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah. 23 But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was held before the Lord in Jerusalem. 24 Moreover Josiah put away those who consulted mediums and spiritists, the household gods and idols, all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might perform the words of (AL)the law which were written in the book (AM)that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord. 25 (AN)Now before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses; nor after him did any arise like him.
Impending Judgment on Judah
26 Nevertheless the Lord did not turn from the fierceness of His great wrath, with which His anger was aroused against Judah, (AO)because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked Him. 27 And the Lord said, “I will also remove Judah from My sight, as (AP)I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, (AQ)‘My name shall be there.’ ”
Josiah Dies in Battle(AR)
28 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 29 (AS)In his days Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went [q]to the aid of the king of Assyria, to the River Euphrates; and King Josiah went against him. And Pharaoh Necho killed him at (AT)Megiddo when he (AU)confronted him. 30 (AV)Then his servants moved his body in a chariot from Megiddo, brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own tomb. And (AW)the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, anointed him, and made him king in his father’s place.
The Reign and Captivity of Jehoahaz(AX)
31 (AY)Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was (AZ)Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 Now Pharaoh Necho put him in prison (BA)at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and he imposed on the land a tribute of one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 34 Then (BB)Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah, and (BC)changed his name to (BD)Jehoiakim. And Pharaoh took Jehoahaz (BE)and went to Egypt, and [r]he died there.
Jehoiakim Reigns in Judah(BF)
35 So Jehoiakim gave (BG)the silver and gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give money according to the command of Pharaoh; he exacted the silver and gold from the people of the land, from every one according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Necho. 36 (BH)Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zebudah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah. 37 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 23:4 A Canaanite goddess
- 2 Kings 23:4 The gods of the Assyrians
- 2 Kings 23:5 Of the Zodiac
- 2 Kings 23:6 Heb. Asherah, a Canaanite goddess
- 2 Kings 23:7 Lit. houses
- 2 Kings 23:7 Heb. qedeshim, those practicing sodomy and prostitution in religious rituals
- 2 Kings 23:10 Kt. Sons
- 2 Kings 23:11 given
- 2 Kings 23:13 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Kings 23:13 Lit. right of
- 2 Kings 23:13 The Mount of Olives
- 2 Kings 23:15 A place for pagan worship
- 2 Kings 23:19 Lit. houses
- 2 Kings 23:19 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Kings 23:19 So with LXX, Syr., Vg.; MT, Tg. omit the Lord
- 2 Kings 23:20 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Kings 23:29 Or to attack, Heb. al can mean together with or against
- 2 Kings 23:34 Jehoahaz
2 Kings 23
King James Version
23 And the king sent, and they gathered unto him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem.
2 And the king went up into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the Lord.
3 And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant.
4 And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Bethel.
5 And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.
6 And he brought out the grove from the house of the Lord, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the children of the people.
7 And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the Lord, where the women wove hangings for the grove.
8 And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba, and brake down the high places of the gates that were in the entering in of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on a man's left hand at the gate of the city.
9 Nevertheless the priests of the high places came not up to the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem, but they did eat of the unleavened bread among their brethren.
10 And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the children of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech.
11 And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the Lord, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire.
12 And the altars that were on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, did the king beat down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron.
13 And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, did the king defile.
14 And he brake in pieces the images, and cut down the groves, and filled their places with the bones of men.
15 Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he brake down, and burned the high place, and stamped it small to powder, and burned the grove.
16 And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the Lord which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words.
17 Then he said, What title is that that I see? And the men of the city told him, It is the sepulchre of the man of God, which came from Judah, and proclaimed these things that thou hast done against the altar of Bethel.
18 And he said, Let him alone; let no man move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria.
19 And all the houses also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the Lord to anger, Josiah took away, and did to them according to all the acts that he had done in Bethel.
20 And he slew all the priests of the high places that were there upon the altars, and burned men's bones upon them, and returned to Jerusalem.
21 And the king commanded all the people, saying, Keep the passover unto the Lord your God, as it is written in the book of this covenant.
22 Surely there was not holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah;
23 But in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, wherein this passover was holden to the Lord in Jerusalem.
24 Moreover the workers with familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the images, and the idols, and all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord.
25 And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.
26 Notwithstanding the Lord turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had provoked him withal.
27 And the Lord said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there.
28 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
29 In his days Pharaohnechoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him.
30 And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead.
31 Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
32 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done.
33 And Pharaohnechoh put him in bands at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and put the land to a tribute of an hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold.
34 And Pharaohnechoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and turned his name to Jehoiakim, and took Jehoahaz away: and he came to Egypt, and died there.
35 And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give the money according to the commandment of Pharaoh: he exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, of every one according to his taxation, to give it unto Pharaohnechoh.
36 Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Zebudah, the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah.
37 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done.
2 Kings 23
Good News Translation
Josiah Does Away with Pagan Worship(A)
23 King Josiah summoned all the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 and together they went to the Temple, accompanied by the priests and the prophets and all the rest of the people, rich and poor alike. Before them all the king read aloud the whole book of the covenant which had been found in the Temple. 3 He stood by the royal column and made a covenant with the Lord to obey him, to keep his laws and commands with all his heart and soul, and to put into practice the demands attached to the covenant, as written in the book. And all the people promised to keep the covenant.
4 (B)Then Josiah ordered the High Priest Hilkiah, his assistant priests, and the guards on duty at the entrance to the Temple to bring out of the Temple all the objects used in the worship of Baal, of the goddess Asherah, and of the stars. The king burned all these objects outside the city near Kidron Valley and then had the ashes taken to Bethel. 5 He removed from office the priests that the kings of Judah had ordained to offer sacrifices[a] on the pagan altars in the cities of Judah and in places near Jerusalem—all the priests who offered sacrifices to Baal, to the sun, the moon, the planets, and the stars. 6 He removed from the Temple the symbol of the goddess Asherah, took it out of the city to Kidron Valley, burned it, pounded its ashes to dust, and scattered it over the public burying ground. 7 He destroyed the living quarters in the Temple occupied by the temple prostitutes.[b] (It was there that women wove robes used in the worship of Asherah.) 8 He brought to Jerusalem the priests who were in the cities of Judah, and throughout the whole country he desecrated the altars where they had offered sacrifices. He also tore down the altars dedicated to the goat demons near the gate built by Joshua, the city governor, which was to the left of the main gate as one enters the city. 9 Those priests were not allowed to serve in the Temple, but they could eat the unleavened bread provided for their fellow priests.
10 (C)King Josiah also desecrated Topheth, the pagan place of worship in Hinnom Valley, so that no one could sacrifice his son or daughter as a burnt offering to the god Molech. 11 He also removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the worship of the sun, and he burned the chariots used in this worship. (These were kept in the temple courtyard, near the gate and not far from the living quarters of Nathan Melech, a high official.) 12 (D)The altars which the kings of Judah had built on the palace roof above King Ahaz' quarters, King Josiah tore down, along with the altars put up by King Manasseh in the two courtyards of the Temple; he smashed the altars to bits[c] and threw them into Kidron Valley. 13 (E)Josiah desecrated the altars that King Solomon had built east of Jerusalem, south of the Mount of Olives,[d] for the worship of disgusting idols—Astarte the goddess of Sidon, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Molech the god of Ammon. 14 King Josiah broke the stone pillars to pieces, cut down the symbols of the goddess Asherah, and the ground where they had stood he covered with human bones.
15 (F)Josiah also tore down the place of worship in Bethel, which had been built by King Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into sin. Josiah pulled down the altar, broke its stones into pieces,[e] and pounded them to dust; he also burned the image of Asherah. 16 (G)Then Josiah looked around and saw some tombs there on the hill; he had the bones taken out of them and burned on the altar. In this way he desecrated the altar, doing what the prophet had predicted long before during the festival as King Jeroboam was standing by the altar. King Josiah looked around and saw the tomb of the prophet[f] who had made this prediction. 17 (H)“Whose tomb is that?” he asked.
The people of Bethel answered, “It is the tomb of the prophet who came from Judah and predicted these things that you have done to this altar.”
18 “Leave it as it is,” Josiah ordered. “His bones are not to be moved.”
So his bones were not moved, neither were those of the prophet who had come from Samaria.
19 In every city of Israel King Josiah tore down all the pagan places of worship which had been built by the kings of Israel, who thereby aroused the Lord's anger. He did to all those altars what he had done in Bethel. 20 He killed all the pagan priests on the altars where they served, and he burned human bones on every altar. Then he returned to Jerusalem.
Josiah Celebrates the Passover(I)
21 King Josiah ordered the people to celebrate the Passover in honor of the Lord their God, as written in the book of the covenant. 22 No Passover like this one had ever been celebrated by any of the kings of Israel or of Judah, since the time when judges ruled the nation. 23 Now at last, in the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah, the Passover was celebrated in Jerusalem.
Other Changes Made by Josiah
24 In order to enforce the laws written in the book that the High Priest Hilkiah had found in the Temple, King Josiah removed from Jerusalem and the rest of Judah all the mediums and fortunetellers, and all the household gods, idols, and all other pagan objects of worship. 25 There had never been a king like him before, who served the Lord with all his heart, mind, and strength, obeying all the Law of Moses; nor has there been a king like him since.
26 But the Lord's fierce anger had been aroused against Judah by what King Manasseh had done, and even now it did not die down. 27 The Lord said, “I will do to Judah what I have done to Israel: I will banish the people of Judah from my sight, and I will reject Jerusalem, the city I chose, and the Temple, the place I said was where I should be worshiped.”
The End of Josiah's Reign(J)
28 Everything else that King Josiah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah. 29 While Josiah was king, King Neco of Egypt led an army to the Euphrates River to help the emperor of Assyria. King Josiah tried to stop the Egyptian army at Megiddo and was killed in battle. 30 His officials placed his body in a chariot and took it back to Jerusalem, where he was buried in the royal tombs.
The people of Judah chose Josiah's son Joahaz and anointed him king.
King Joahaz of Judah(K)
31 Joahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king of Judah, and he ruled in Jerusalem for three months. His mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah from the city of Libnah. 32 Following the example of his ancestors, he sinned against the Lord. 33 His reign ended when King Neco of Egypt took him prisoner in Riblah, in the land of Hamath, and made Judah pay 7,500 pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold as tribute. 34 (L)King Neco made Josiah's son Eliakim king of Judah as successor to Josiah, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. Joahaz was taken to Egypt by King Neco, and there he died.
King Jehoiakim of Judah(M)
35 King Jehoiakim collected a tax from the people in proportion to their wealth, in order to raise the amount needed to pay the tribute demanded by the king of Egypt.
36 (N)Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king of Judah, and he ruled in Jerusalem for eleven years. His mother was Zebidah, the daughter of Pedaiah from the town of Rumah. 37 Following the example of his ancestors, Jehoiakim sinned against the Lord.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 23:5 Some ancient translations to offer sacrifices; Hebrew and he offered sacrifices.
- 2 Kings 23:7 Men and women who practiced prostitution in the worship of fertility gods.
- 2 Kings 23:12 Probable text smashed … to bits; Hebrew unclear.
- 2 Kings 23:13 Hebrew here refers to it as “Mount of Destruction” or “Mount of Sin.”
- 2 Kings 23:15 One ancient translation broke its stones into pieces; Hebrew burned the altar.
- 2 Kings 23:16 One ancient translation during the festival … the prophet; Hebrew does not have these words.
2 Reyes 23
Nueva Biblia de las Américas
Reformas del rey Josías
23 (A)Entonces el rey mandó reunir con él a todos los ancianos de Judá y Jerusalén. 2 Y el rey subió a la casa del Señor, y con él todos los hombres de Judá, todos los habitantes de Jerusalén, los sacerdotes, los profetas y todo el pueblo, desde el menor hasta el mayor; y leyó en su presencia[a] todas las palabras del libro del pacto(B) que había sido hallado en la casa del Señor(C). 3 Después el rey se puso en pie junto a la columna e hizo pacto delante del Señor(D) de andar en pos del Señor y de guardar Sus mandamientos, Sus testimonios y Sus estatutos(E) con todo su corazón y con toda su alma, para cumplir las palabras de este pacto escritas en este libro. Y todo el pueblo confirmó el pacto.
4 Después el rey ordenó que el sumo sacerdote Hilcías y los sacerdotes de segundo orden y los guardianes del umbral(F), sacaran del templo del Señor todas las vasijas que se habían hecho para Baal, para la Asera[b] y para todo el ejército de los cielos(G), y los quemó fuera de Jerusalén en los campos del Cedrón y llevó sus cenizas a Betel[c](H). 5 Josías quitó a los sacerdotes idólatras que los reyes de Judá habían nombrado para quemar incienso en los lugares altos en las ciudades de Judá y en los alrededores de Jerusalén, también a los que quemaban incienso a Baal, al sol y a la luna, a las constelaciones y a todo el ejército de los cielos(I). 6 Y sacó la Asera de la casa del Señor fuera de Jerusalén, al torrente Cedrón, y la quemó junto al torrente Cedrón; la redujo a polvo(J) y arrojó el polvo sobre los sepulcros de los hijos del pueblo(K). 7 También derribó las casas de los dedicados a la prostitución[d](L) que estaban en la casa del Señor, donde las mujeres tejían(M) pabellones para la Asera.
8 Entonces Josías trajo a todos los sacerdotes de las ciudades de Judá, y profanó los lugares altos donde los sacerdotes habían quemado incienso, desde Geba(N) hasta Beerseba, y derribó los lugares altos de las puertas que estaban a la entrada de la puerta de Josué, gobernador de la ciudad, a la izquierda de la puerta de la ciudad. 9 Sin embargo, los sacerdotes(O) de los lugares altos no podían subir al altar del Señor en Jerusalén, sino que comían panes sin levadura entre sus hermanos. 10 También profanó al Tofet que está en el valle de Ben Hinom, para que nadie hiciera pasar por fuego(P) a su hijo o a su hija(Q) para honrar a Moloc(R).
11 A la entrada de la casa del Señor, junto a la cámara de Natán Melec, el oficial que estaba en las dependencias, quitó los caballos que los reyes de Judá habían dedicado al sol(S), y prendió fuego a los carros del sol. 12 Y los altares que estaban sobre el techo(T), el aposento alto de Acaz que habían hecho los reyes de Judá, y los altares que había hecho Manasés en los dos atrios de la casa del Señor el rey los derribó(U), los destrozó[e] allí y arrojó su polvo al torrente Cedrón(V). 13 El rey también profanó los lugares altos que estaban frente a Jerusalén, los que estaban a la derecha del monte de destrucción, que Salomón, rey de Israel, había edificado a Astoret, abominación de los sidonios, y a Quemos, abominación de los moabitas(W), y a Milcom(X), ídolo abominable de los amonitas(Y). 14 Asimismo hizo pedazos los pilares sagrados(Z), derribó las Aseras y llenó sus lugares con huesos humanos(AA).
15 Además, derribó el altar que estaba en Betel(AB) y el lugar alto que había hecho Jeroboam, hijo de Nabat, el que hizo pecar a Israel, o sea, derribó también aquel altar y el lugar alto(AC), destruyó sus piedras, las redujo a polvo y quemó la Asera(AD). 16 Al regresar, Josías vio los sepulcros que estaban allí en el monte, y envió a recoger los huesos de los sepulcros y los quemó sobre el altar, profanándolo, conforme a la palabra del Señor que había proclamado el hombre de Dios(AE) que había anunciado estas cosas. 17 Entonces dijo: «¿Qué monumento es este que veo?». Y los hombres de la ciudad le dijeron: «Es el sepulcro del hombre de Dios que vino de Judá y proclamó estas cosas que has hecho contra el altar de Betel(AF)». 18 Y él dijo: «Déjenlo en paz; que nadie moleste sus huesos». Así dejaron sus huesos intactos con los huesos del profeta que vino(AG) de Samaria.
19 Josías quitó también todas las casas de los lugares altos que estaban en las ciudades de Samaria, las cuales habían hecho los reyes de Israel provocando a ira al Señor(AH). Les hizo tal y como había hecho en Betel. 20 Y mató sobre los altares a todos los sacerdotes de los lugares altos que estaban allí, y quemó huesos humanos sobre ellos(AI). Y regresó a Jerusalén.
21 (AJ)Entonces el rey ordenó a todo el pueblo: «Celebren la Pascua al Señor su Dios como está escrito en este libro del pacto(AK)». 22 En verdad que tal Pascua no se había celebrado desde los días de los jueces que gobernaban a Israel, ni en ninguno de los días de los reyes de Israel y de los reyes de Judá(AL). 23 Solo en el año dieciocho del rey Josías fue celebrada esta Pascua al Señor en Jerusalén.
24 Josías también quitó[f] a los adivinos y a los espiritistas(AM), los ídolos domésticos(AN) y los otros ídolos(AO), y todas las abominaciones que se veían en la tierra de Judá y en Jerusalén, con el fin de confirmar las palabras de la ley(AP) que estaban escritas en el libro que el sacerdote Hilcías había hallado en la casa del Señor(AQ). 25 Y antes de él no hubo rey como él que se volviera al Señor con todo su corazón, con toda su alma y con todas sus fuerzas, conforme a toda la ley de Moisés, ni otro como él se levantó después de él(AR).
26 Sin embargo, el Señor no desistió del furor de Su gran ira, ya que ardía Su ira contra Judá a causa de todas las provocaciones con que Manasés lo había provocado(AS). 27 Y el Señor dijo: «También quitaré a Judá de Mi presencia, como he quitado a Israel(AT). Y desecharé a esta ciudad que Yo había escogido, a Jerusalén, y al templo del[g] cual dije: “Mi nombre estará allí(AU)”».
28 Los demás hechos de Josías y todo lo que hizo, ¿no están escritos en el libro de las Crónicas de los reyes de Judá? 29 (AV)En sus días subió Faraón Necao, rey de Egipto, contra el rey de Asiria junto al río Éufrates(AW). Y el rey Josías fue a su encuentro, pero Faraón Necao lo mató en Meguido(AX) en cuanto lo vio. 30 Sus siervos llevaron su cuerpo en un carro desde Meguido, lo trajeron a Jerusalén y lo sepultaron en su sepulcro(AY). Entonces el pueblo de aquella tierra tomó a Joacaz, hijo de Josías, y lo ungieron y lo hicieron rey en lugar de su padre(AZ).
Reinados de Joacaz y Joacim
31 (BA)Joacaz tenía veintitrés años cuando comenzó a reinar(BB), y reinó tres meses en Jerusalén. El nombre de su madre era Hamutal, hija de Jeremías, de Libna(BC). 32 Hizo lo malo ante los ojos del Señor, conforme a todo lo que habían hecho sus padres(BD). 33 Y Faraón Necao(BE) lo puso en prisión en Ribla(BF), en la tierra de Hamat(BG), para que no reinara en Jerusalén; e impuso una multa sobre la tierra de 34 toneladas de plata y 34 kilos de oro. 34 Faraón Necao hizo rey a Eliaquim, hijo de Josías(BH), en lugar de Josías su padre, y cambió su nombre por el de Joacim. Pero tomó a Joacaz y lo llevó a Egipto(BI), y allí murió(BJ). 35 Y Joacim dio la plata y el oro a Faraón, e impuso contribuciones al país para entregar el dinero conforme al mandato de Faraón. Exigió la plata y el oro del pueblo del país, a cada uno conforme a sus bienes, para dárselo a Faraón Necao(BK).
36 Joacim tenía veinticinco años cuando comenzó a reinar, y reinó once años en Jerusalén(BL). El nombre de su madre era Zebuda, hija de Pedaías, de Ruma. 37 Hizo lo malo ante los ojos del Señor, conforme a todo lo que habían hecho sus padres(BM).
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
Nueva Biblia de las Américas™ NBLA™ Copyright © 2005 por The Lockman Foundation
