Josiah Dies in Battle

^20 (A)After all this, when Josiah had set the ^[a]temple in order, Neco king of Egypt came up to wage war at ^(B)Carchemish on the Euphrates, and Josiah went out to engage him. ²¹ But ^[b]Neco sent messengers to him, saying, “^[c](C)What business do you have with me, King of Judah? I am not coming against you today, but against the house with which I am at war, and God has told me to hurry. For your own sake, stop interfering with God who is with me, so that He does not destroy you.” ²² However, Josiah would not turn ^[d]away from him, but ^(D)disguised himself in order to fight against him; nor did he listen to the words of Neco ^(E)from the mouth of God, but he came to wage war on the plain of ^(F)Megiddo. ²³ The archers shot King Josiah, and the king said to his servants, “Take me away, for I am badly wounded.” ²⁴ So his servants took him out of the chariot and carried him on the second chariot which he had, and brought him to Jerusalem ^[e]where he died and was buried in the tombs of his fathers. ^(G)All Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah. ²⁵ Then ^(H)Jeremiah chanted a song of mourning for Josiah. And all the male and female singers speak about Josiah in their songs of mourning to this day. And they made them an ordinance in Israel; behold, they are also written in the Lamentations. ²⁶ Now the rest of the acts of Josiah and his deeds of devotion as written in the Law of the Lord, ²⁷ and his acts, the first to the last, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.