2 Chronicles 30-32

21st Century King James Version

30 And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem to keep the Passover unto the Lord God of Israel.

² For the king had taken counsel with his princes and all the congregation in Jerusalem to keep the Passover in the second month.

³ For they could not keep it at that time, because the priests had not sanctified themselves sufficiently, neither had the people gathered themselves together at Jerusalem.

⁴ And the thing pleased the king and all the congregation.

⁵ So they established a decree to make proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba even to Dan, that they should come to keep the Passover unto the Lord God of Israel at Jerusalem; for they had not done it for a long time in such manner as it was written.

⁶ So the couriers went with the letters from the king and his princes throughout all Israel and Judah, and according to the commandment of the king, saying, “Ye children of Israel, turn again unto the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and He will return to the remnant of you that have escaped out of the hand of the kings of Assyria.

⁷ And be not ye like your fathers and like your brethren who trespassed against the Lord God of their fathers, so that He therefore gave them up to desolation, as ye see.

⁸ Now be ye not stiffnecked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves unto the Lord and enter into His sanctuary, which He hath sanctified for ever; and serve the Lord your God, that the fierceness of His wrath may turn away from you.

⁹ For if ye turn again unto the Lord, your brethren and your children shall find compassion before those who lead them captive, so that they shall come again into this land; for the Lord your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away His face from you if ye return unto Him.”

¹⁰ So the couriers passed from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, even unto Zebulun; but they laughed them to scorn and mocked them.

¹¹ Nevertheless some from Asher and Manasseh and from Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem.

¹² Also the hand of God was in Judah, to give them one heart to do the commandment of the king and of the princes by the word of the Lord.

¹³ And there assembled at Jerusalem many people to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the second month, a very great congregation.

¹⁴ And they arose and took away the altars that were in Jerusalem, and all the altars for incense took they away and cast them into the Brook Kidron.

¹⁵ Then they killed the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month; and the priests and the Levites were ashamed, and sanctified themselves and brought in the burnt offerings into the house of the Lord.

¹⁶ And they stood in their place according to their order, according to the law of Moses the man of God. The priests sprinkled the blood which they received from the hand of the Levites.

¹⁷ For there were many in the congregation who were not sanctified: therefore the Levites had the charge of the killing of the Passover lambs for every one who was not clean, to sanctify them unto the Lord.

¹⁸ For a multitude of the people, even many from Ephraim, and Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover otherwise than it was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “The good Lord pardon every one

¹⁹ who prepareth his heart to seek God, the Lord God of his fathers, though he be not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary.”

²⁰ And the Lord hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people.

²¹ And the children of Israel who were present at Jerusalem kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with great gladness; and the Levites and the priests praised the Lord day by day, singing with loud instruments unto the Lord.

²² And Hezekiah spoke comfortingly unto all the Levites who taught the good knowledge of the Lord; and they ate throughout the feast seven days, offering peace offerings and making confession to the Lord God of their fathers.

²³ And the whole assembly took counsel to keep another seven days, and they kept another seven days with gladness.

²⁴ For Hezekiah king of Judah gave to the congregation a thousand bullocks and seven thousand sheep, and the princes gave to the congregation a thousand bullocks and ten thousand sheep; and a great number of priests sanctified themselves.

²⁵ And all the congregation of Judah, with the priests and the Levites and all the congregation that came out of Israel, and the strangers who came out of the land of Israel and who dwelt in Judah rejoiced.

²⁶ So there was great joy in Jerusalem; for since the time of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, there was not the like in Jerusalem.

²⁷ Then the priests, the Levites, arose and blessed the people; and their voice was heard and their prayer came up to His holy dwelling place, even unto heaven.

31 Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah, and broke the images in pieces, and cut down the Asherah poles, and threw down the high places and the altars out of all Judah and Benjamin, in Ephraim also and Manasseh, until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned, every man to his possession, into their own cities.

² And Hezekiah appointed the watches of the priests and the Levites according to their courses, every man according to his service, the priests and Levites for burnt offerings and for peace offerings, to minister and to give thanks and to praise in the gates of the tents of the Lord.

³ He appointed also the king’s portion of his substance for the burnt offerings, to wit: for the morning and evening burnt offerings, and the burnt offerings for the Sabbaths and for the new moons and for the set feasts, as it is written in the law of the Lord.

⁴ Moreover he commanded the people who dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests and the Levites, that they might be encouraged in the law of the Lord.

⁵ And as soon as the commandment came abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase of the field; and the tithe of all things brought they in abundantly.

⁶ And concerning the children of Israel and Judah, who dwelt in the cities of Judah, they also brought in the tithe of oxen and sheep, and the tithe of holy things which were consecrated unto the Lord their God, and laid them in heaps.

⁷ In the third month they began to lay the foundation of the heaps, and finished them in the seventh month.

⁸ And when Hezekiah and the princes came and saw the heaps, they blessed the Lord and His people Israel.

⁹ Then Hezekiah questioned the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps.

¹⁰ And Azariah the chief priest of the house of Zadok answered him and said, “Since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat and have left plenty; for the Lord hath blessed His people, and that which is left is this great store.

¹¹ Then Hezekiah commanded to prepare storage chambers in the house of the Lord; and they prepared them,

¹² and faithfully brought in the offerings and the tithes and the dedicated things, over which Cononiah the Levite was ruler and Shimei his brother was the next.

¹³ And Jehiel, and Azaziah, and Nahath, and Asahel, and Jerimoth, and Jozabad, and Eliel, and Ismachiah, and Mahath, and Benaiah were overseers under the hand of Cononiah and Shimei his brother at the commandment of Hezekiah the king and Azariah the ruler of the house of God.

¹⁴ And Kore the son of Imnah the Levite, the gatekeeper toward the east, was over the freewill offerings of God to distribute the oblations of the Lord and the most holy things.

¹⁵ And next to him were Eden, and Miniamin, and Jeshua, and Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah in the cities of the priests, in their set office, to give to their brethren by courses, as well to the great as to the small;

¹⁶ besides their genealogy of males from three years old and upward, even unto every one who entereth into the house of the Lord, his daily portion for their service in their charges, according to their courses,

¹⁷ both to the genealogy of the priests by the house of their fathers, and the Levites from twenty years old and upward, in their charges by their courses;

¹⁸ and to the genealogy of all their little ones, their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, through all the congregation; for in their set office they sanctified themselves in holiness;

²⁰ And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah, and wrought that which was good and right and truth before the Lord his God.

²¹ And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered.

32 After these things and the establishment thereof, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and entered into Judah, and encamped against the fortified cities, and thought to win them for himself.

² And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come, and that he was purposed to fight against Jerusalem,

³ he took counsel with his princes and his mighty men to stop the waters of the fountains which were outside the city; and they helped him.

⁴ So there were gathered many people together, who stopped all the fountains and the brook that ran through the midst of the land, saying, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water?”

⁵ Also he strengthened himself, and built up all the wall that was broken, and raised it up to the towers, and another wall outside, and repaired Millo in the City of David, and made darts and shields in abundance.

⁶ And he set captains of war over the people, and gathered them together to him in the street of the gate of the city, and spoke comfortingly to them, saying,

⁷ “Be strong and courageous. Be not afraid nor dismayed by the king of Assyria and all the multitude that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.

⁸ With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people rested themselves upon the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

⁹ After this Sennacherib king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem (but he himself laid siege against Lachish, and all his power with him) unto Hezekiah king of Judah, and unto all Judah who were at Jerusalem, saying,

¹⁰ “Thus saith Sennacherib king of Assyria: ‘Whereon do ye trust, that ye abide in the siege in Jerusalem?

¹¹ Doth not Hezekiah persuade you to give yourselves over to die by famine and by thirst, saying, “The Lord our God shall deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria”?

¹² Hath not the same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying, “Ye shall worship before one altar and burn incense upon it”?

¹³ Know ye not what I and my fathers have done unto all the people of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands any way able to deliver their lands out of mine hand?

¹⁴ Who was there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers utterly destroyed that could deliver his people out of mine hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of mine hand?

¹⁵ Now therefore let not Hezekiah deceive you nor persuade you on this manner, neither yet believe him; for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of mine hand and out of the hand of my fathers. How much less shall your God deliver you out of mine hand?’”

¹⁶ And his servants spoke yet more against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah.

¹⁷ He wrote also letters to rail at the Lord God of Israel and to speak against Him, saying, “As the gods of the nations of other lands have not delivered their people out of mine hand, so shall not the God of Hezekiah deliver his people out of mine hand.”

¹⁸ Then they cried with a loud voice in the Jews’ speech unto the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall to frighten them and to trouble them, that they might take the city.

¹⁹ And they spoke against the God of Jerusalem as against the gods of the people of the earth, which were the work of the hands of man.

²⁰ And for this cause Hezekiah the king and the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, prayed and cried to heaven.

²¹ And the Lord sent an angel who cut off all the mighty men of valor, and the leaders and captains in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he had come into the house of his god, those who came forth from his own loins slew him there with the sword.

²² Thus the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria and from the hand of all others, and guided them on every side.

²³ And many brought gifts unto the Lord to Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that he was magnified in the sight of all nations from thenceforth.

²⁴ In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death, and prayed unto the Lord; and He spoke unto him, and He gave him a sign.

²⁵ But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him, for his heart was lifted up. Therefore there was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerusalem.

²⁶ Notwithstanding, Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the rath of the Lord came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah.

²⁷ And Hezekiah had exceeding much riches and honor; and he made himself treasuries for silver, and for gold, and for recious stones, and for spices, and for shields, and for all manner of pleasant jewels;

²⁸ storehouses also for the increase of corn and wine and oil, and stalls for all manner of beasts, and cotes for flocks.

²⁹ Moreover he provided for himself cities, and possessions of flocks and herds in abundance; for God had given him very much substance.

³⁰ This same Hezekiah also stopped the upper watercourse of Gihon, and brought it straight down to the west side of the City of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works.

³¹ Howbeit, in the business of the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to inquire of the wonder that was done in the land, God left him to try him, that He might know all that was in his heart.

³² Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah and his goodness, behold, they are written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, and in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.

³³ And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the chiefest of the sepulchers of the sons of David; and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did him honor at his death. And Manasseh his son reigned in his stead.