22Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. His mother was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah from Bozkath.H2977H8083H8141H1121H4427H4427H7970H259H8141H3389H517H8034H3040H1323H5718H1218 2He did what was pleasing in the LORD's sight and followed the example of his ancestor David. He did not turn away from doing what was right.H6213H3477H5869H3068H3212H1870H1732H1H5493H3225H8040 3In the eighteenth year of his reign, King Josiah sent Shaphan son of Azaliah and grandson of Meshullam, the court secretary, to the Temple of the LORD. He told him,H8083H6240H8141H4428H2977H4428H7971H8227H1121H683H1121H4918H5608H1004H3068H559 4"Go to Hilkiah the high priest and have him count the money the gatekeepers have collected from the people at the LORD's Temple.H5927H2518H1419H3548H8552H3701H935H1004H3068H8104H5592H622H5971 5Entrust this money to the men assigned to supervise the Temple's restoration. Then they can use it to pay workers to repair the Temple of the LORD.H5414H3027H6213H4399H6485H1004H3068H5414H6213H4399H1004H3068H2388H919H1004 6They will need to hire carpenters, builders, and masons. Also have them buy the timber and the finished stone needed to repair the Temple.H2796H1129H1443H7069H6086H4274H68H2388H1004 7But don't require the construction supervisors to keep account of the money they receive, for they are honest and trustworthy men."H2803H3701H5414H3027H6213H530 8Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the court secretary, "I have found the Book of the Law in the LORD's Temple!" Then Hilkiah gave the scroll to Shaphan, and he read it.H2518H1419H3548H559H8227H5608H4672H5612H8451H1004H3068H2518H5414H5612H8227H7121 9Shaphan went to the king and reported, "Your officials have turned over the money collected at the Temple of the LORD to the workers and supervisors at the Temple."H8227H5608H935H4428H7725H4428H1697H7725H559H5650H5413H3701H4672H1004H5414H3027H6213H4399H6485H1004H3068 10Shaphan also told the king, "Hilkiah the priest has given me a scroll." So Shaphan read it to the king.H8227H5608H5046H4428H559H2518H3548H5414H5612H8227H7121H6440H4428 11When the king heard what was written in the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes in despair.H4428H8085H1697H5612H8451H7167H899 12Then he gave these orders to Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Acbor son of Micaiah, Shaphan the court secretary, and Asaiah the king's personal adviser.H4428H6680H2518H3548H296H1121H8227H5907H1121H4320H8227H5608H6222H5650H4428H559 13"Go to the Temple and speak to the LORD for me and for the people and for all Judah. Inquire about the words written in this scroll that has been found. For the LORD's great anger is burning against us because our ancestors have not obeyed the words in this scroll. We have not been doing everything it says we must do."H3212H1875H3068H5971H3063H1697H5612H4672H1419H2534H3068H3341H1H8085H1697H5612H6213H3789 14So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Acbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to the New Quarter of Jerusalem to consult with the prophet Huldah. She was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, son of Harhas, the keeper of the Temple wardrobe.H2518H3548H296H5907H8227H6222H3212H2468H5031H802H7967H1121H8616H1121H2745H8104H899H3427H3389H4932H1696 15She said to them, "The LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken! Go back and tell the man who sent you,H559H559H3068H430H3478H559H376H7971 16'This is what the LORD says: I am going to bring disaster on this city and its people. All the words written in the scroll that the king of Judah has read will come true.H559H3068H935H7451H4725H3427H1697H5612H4428H3063H7121 17For my people have abandoned me and offered sacrifices to pagan gods, and I am very angry with them for everything they have done. My anger will burn against this place, and it will not be quenched.'H5800H6999H312H430H3707H4639H3027H2534H3341H4725H3518 18"But go to the king of Judah who sent you to seek the LORD and tell him: 'This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says concerning the message you have just heard.H4428H3063H7971H1875H3068H559H559H3068H430H3478H1697H8085 19You were sorry and humbled yourself before the LORD when you heard what I said against this city and its people—that this land would be cursed and become desolate. You tore your clothing in despair and wept before me in repentance. And I have indeed heard you, says the LORD.H3824H7401H3665H6440H3068H8085H1696H4725H3427H8047H7045H7167H899H1058H6440H8085H5002H3068 20So I will not send the promised disaster until after you have died and been buried in peace. You will not see the disaster I am going to bring on this city.'" So they took her message back to the king.H622H1H622H6913H7965H5869H7200H7451H935H4725H7725H4428H1697H7725
23Then the king summoned all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.H4428H7971H622H2205H3063H3389 2And the king went up to the Temple of the LORD with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, along with the priests and the prophets—all the people from the least to the greatest. There the king read to them the entire Book of the Covenant that had been found in the LORD's Temple.H4428H5927H1004H3068H376H3063H3427H3389H3548H5030H5971H6996H1419H7121H241H1697H5612H1285H4672H1004H3068 3The king took his place of authority beside the pillar and renewed the covenant in the LORD's presence. He pledged to obey the LORD by keeping all his commands, laws, and decrees with all his heart and soul. In this way, he confirmed all the terms of the covenant that were written in the scroll, and all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.H4428H5975H5982H3772H1285H6440H3068H3212H310H3068H8104H4687H5715H2708H3820H5315H6965H1697H1285H3789H5612H5971H5975H1285 4Then the king instructed Hilkiah the high priest and the priests of the second rank and the Temple gatekeepers to remove from the LORD's Temple all the articles that were used to worship Baal, Asherah, and all the powers of the heavens. The king had all these things burned outside Jerusalem on the terraces of the Kidron Valley, and he carried the ashes away to Bethel.H4428H6680H2518H1419H3548H3548H4932H8104H5592H3318H1964H3068H3627H6213H1168H842H6635H8064H8313H2351H3389H7709H6939H5375H6083H1008 5He did away with the idolatrous priests, who had been appointed by the previous kings of Judah, for they had offered sacrifices at the pagan shrines throughout Judah and even in the vicinity of Jerusalem. They had also offered sacrifices to Baal, and to the sun, the moon, the constellations, and to all the powers of the heavens.H7673H3649H4428H3063H5414H6999H1116H5892H3063H4524H3389H6999H1168H8121H3394H4208H6635H8064 6The king removed the Asherah pole from the LORD's Temple and took it outside Jerusalem to the Kidron Valley, where he burned it. Then he ground the ashes of the pole to dust and threw the dust over the graves of the people.H3318H842H1004H3068H2351H3389H5158H6939H8313H5158H6939H1854H6083H7993H6083H6913H1121H5971 7He also tore down the living quarters of the male and female shrine prostitutes that were inside the Temple of the LORD, where the women wove coverings for the Asherah pole.H5422H1004H6945H1004H3068H802H707H1004H842 8Josiah brought to Jerusalem all the priests who were living in other towns of Judah. He also defiled the pagan shrines, where they had offered sacrifices—all the way from Geba to Beersheba. He destroyed the shrines at the entrance to the gate of Joshua, the governor of Jerusalem. This gate was located to the left of the city gate as one enters the city.H935H3548H5892H3063H2930H1116H3548H6999H1387H884H5422H1116H8179H6607H8179H3091H8269H5892H376H8040H8179H5892 9The priests who had served at the pagan shrines were not allowed to serve at the LORD's altar in Jerusalem, but they were allowed to eat unleavened bread with the other priests.H3548H1116H5927H4196H3068H3389H398H4682H8432H251 10Then the king defiled the altar of Topheth in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, so no one could ever again use it to sacrifice a son or daughter in the fire as an offering to Molech.H2930H8612H1516H1121H1121H2011H376H1121H1323H5674H784H4432 11He removed from the entrance of the LORD's Temple the horse statues that the former kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. They were near the quarters of Nathan-melech the eunuch, an officer of the court. The king also burned the chariots dedicated to the sun.H7673H5483H4428H3063H5414H8121H935H1004H3068H3957H5419H5631H6503H8313H4818H8121H784 12Josiah tore down the altars that the kings of Judah had built on the palace roof above the upper room of Ahaz. The king destroyed the altars that Manasseh had built in the two courtyards of the LORD's Temple. He smashed them to bits and scattered the pieces in the Kidron Valley.H4196H1406H5944H271H4428H3063H6213H4196H4519H6213H8147H2691H1004H3068H4428H5422H7323H7993H6083H5158H6939 13The king also desecrated the pagan shrines east of Jerusalem, to the south of the Mount of Corruption, where King Solomon of Israel had built shrines for Ashtoreth, the detestable goddess of the Sidonians; and for Chemosh, the detestable god of the Moabites; and for Molech, the vile god of the Ammonites.H1116H6440H3389H3225H2022H4889H8010H4428H3478H1129H6253H8251H6722H3645H8251H4124H4445H8441H1121H5983H4428H2930 14He smashed the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah poles. Then he desecrated these places by scattering human bones over them.H7665H4676H3772H842H4390H4725H6106H120 15The king also tore down the altar at Bethel—the pagan shrine that Jeroboam son of Nebat had made when he caused Israel to sin. He burned down the shrine and ground it to dust, and he burned the Asherah pole.H4196H1008H1116H3379H1121H5028H3478H2398H6213H4196H1116H5422H8313H1116H1854H6083H8313H842 16Then Josiah turned around and noticed several tombs in the side of the hill. He ordered that the bones be brought out, and he burned them on the altar at Bethel to desecrate it. (This happened just as the LORD had promised through the man of God when Jeroboam stood beside the altar at the festival.) Then Josiah turned and looked up at the tomb of the man of God who had predicted these things.H2977H6437H7200H6913H2022H7971H3947H6106H6913H8313H4196H2930H1697H3068H376H430H7121H7121H1697 17"What is that monument over there?" Josiah asked. And the people of the town told him, "It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and predicted the very things that you have just done to the altar at Bethel!"H559H6725H1975H7200H582H5892H559H6913H376H430H935H3063H7121H1697H6213H4196H1008 18Josiah replied, "Leave it alone. Don't disturb his bones." So they did not burn his bones or those of the old prophet from Samaria.H559H3240H376H5128H6106H6106H4422H6106H5030H935H8111 19Then Josiah demolished all the buildings at the pagan shrines in the towns of Samaria, just as he had done at Bethel. They had been built by the various kings of Israel and had made the LORD very angry.H1004H1116H5892H8111H4428H3478H6213H3707H2977H5493H6213H4639H6213H1008 20He executed the priests of the pagan shrines on their own altars, and he burned human bones on the altars to desecrate them. Finally, he returned to Jerusalem.H2076H3548H1116H4196H8313H120H6106H7725H3389 21King Josiah then issued this order to all the people: "You must celebrate the Passover to the LORD your God, as required in this Book of the Covenant."H4428H6680H5971H559H6213H6453H3068H430H3789H5612H1285 22There had not been a Passover celebration like that since the time when the judges ruled in Israel, nor throughout all the years of the kings of Israel and Judah.H6213H6453H3117H8199H8199H3478H3117H4428H3478H4428H3063 23This Passover was celebrated to the LORD in Jerusalem in the eighteenth year of King Josiah's reign.H8083H6240H8141H4428H2977H6453H6213H3068H3389 24Josiah also got rid of the mediums and psychics, the household gods, the idols, and every other kind of detestable practice, both in Jerusalem and throughout the land of Judah. He did this in obedience to the laws written in the scroll that Hilkiah the priest had found in the LORD's Temple.H178H3049H8655H1544H8251H7200H776H3063H3389H2977H1197H6965H1697H8451H3789H5612H2518H3548H4672H1004H3068 25Never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the LORD with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a king like him since.H4428H6440H7725H3068H3824H5315H3966H8451H4872H310H6965 26Even so, the LORD was very angry with Judah because of all the wicked things Manasseh had done to provoke him.H3068H7725H2740H1419H639H639H2734H3063H3708H4519H3707 27For the LORD said, "I will also banish Judah from my presence just as I have banished Israel. And I will reject my chosen city of Jerusalem and the Temple where my name was to be honored."H3068H559H5493H3063H6440H5493H3478H3988H5892H3389H977H1004H559H8034 28The rest of the events in Josiah's reign and all his deeds are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah.H3499H1697H2977H6213H3789H5612H1697H3117H4428H3063 29While Josiah was king, Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, went to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah and his army marched out to fight him, but King Neco killed him when they met at Megiddo.H3117H6549H4428H4714H5927H4428H804H5104H6578H4428H2977H3212H7125H4191H4023H7200 30Josiah's officers took his body back in a chariot from Megiddo to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb. Then the people of the land anointed Josiah's son Jehoahaz and made him the next king.H5650H7392H4191H4023H935H3389H6912H6900H5971H776H3947H3059H1121H2977H4886H4427H1 31Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah from Libnah.H3059H6242H7969H8141H1121H4427H4427H7969H2320H3389H517H8034H2537H1323H3414H3841 32He did what was evil in the LORD's sight, just as his ancestors had done.H6213H7451H5869H3068H1H6213 33Pharaoh Neco put Jehoahaz in prison at Riblah in the land of Hamath to prevent him from ruling in Jerusalem. He also demanded that Judah pay 7,500 pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold as tribute.H6549H631H7247H776H2574H4427H3389H5414H776H6066H3967H3603H3701H3603H2091 34Pharaoh Neco then installed Eliakim, another of Josiah's sons, to reign in place of his father, and he changed Eliakim's name to Jehoiakim. Jehoahaz was taken to Egypt as a prisoner, where he died.H6549H471H1121H2977H4427H2977H1H5437H8034H3079H3947H3059H3947H935H4714H4191 35In order to get the silver and gold demanded as tribute by Pharaoh Neco, Jehoiakim collected a tax from the people of Judah, requiring them to pay in proportion to their wealth.H3079H5414H3701H2091H6547H6186H776H5414H3701H6310H6547H5065H3701H2091H5971H776H376H6187H5414H6549 36Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother was Zebidah, the daughter of Pedaiah from Rumah.H3079H6242H2568H8141H1121H4427H4427H259H6240H8141H3389H517H8034H2080H1323H6305H7316 37He did what was evil in the LORD's sight, just as his ancestors had done.H6213H7451H5869H3068H1H6213
Dublin, OH
of Jerusalem to consult with the prophet Huldah. She was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, son of Harhas, the keeper of the Temple wardrobe.H2518
