⁷ But if you say to me, “We trust in the Lord our God,” is it not he ^(A)whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and to Jerusalem, “You shall worship before this altar”?

^4 (A)He removed the high places and broke the ^(B)pillars and cut down ^(C)the Asherah. And he broke in pieces ^(D)the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).^{[a] 5 (E)}He trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel, ^(F)so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those who were before him.

¹⁵ The ^(A)spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one.

^12 (A)Has not this same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, “Before one altar you shall worship, and on it you shall burn your sacrifices”?

^7 (A)“Be strong and courageous. ^(B)Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, ^(C)for there are more with us than with him. ⁸ With him is ^(D)an arm of flesh, ^(E)but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

Hezekiah Organizes the Priests

31 Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and ^(A)broke in pieces the ^(B)pillars and cut down ^(C)the Asherim and broke down the high places and the altars throughout all Judah and Benjamin, and in Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had destroyed them all. Then all the people of Israel returned to their cities, every man to his possession.