Chapter 11
CHAPTERS 31-33 OF SECOND CHRONICLES This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Simon.
SECOND CHRONICLES KING JAMES V. CHAPTER 31 Now, when all this was finished, all Israel that were present went out to the cities of Judah, and break the images in pieces, and cut down the groves, and threw down the high places and the altars out of all Judah and Benjamin, and Ephraim also, and Manasseh, until they had utterly
destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned, every man to his possession, and to their own cities. And Hezekiah appointed the courses of the priests and the Levites after 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.
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 feast, as it is written in the law of the Lord. Moreover, He commanded the people that dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests and the Levites that they might be encouraged in the law of the Lord.
And as soon as the commandment came abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance the first fruits 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. And concerning the children of Israel and Judah that 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 by heaps. In the third month they began to lay the foundation of the heaps and finished them in the seventh month. And when Hezekiah and the princes came and saw the heaps, they blessed the Lord and his people Israel. Then Hezekiah questioned with the priest and the Levites concerning the heaps, 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. Then Hezekiah commanded to prepare chambers in the house of the Lord, and they prepared them, and brought in the offerings and the tithes and the dedicated things faithfully,
over which Konaniah the Levite was ruler, and Shemai his brother was the next, and Jeiel and Aziah and Nahath and Asahel and Jeromoth and Jozebad and Iliel and Ismaqiah and Mahath and Benaniah were overseers under the hand of Konaniah and Shemai his brother at the commandment of Hezekiah the king and Azariah the ruler of the house of God. And Kor, the son of Emna the Levite, the porter toward the east, was over the freewill offerings
of God to distribute the oblations of the Lord and the most holy things. And next were Eden and Menah-Amen and Jeshua and Shemiah and Amariah and Shekiah 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, beside their genealogy of males from three years old and upward even unto every one that entereth into the house of the Lord his daily portion
for their service and their charges according to their courses, both to the genealogy of the priests by the house of their fathers and the Levites from 20 years old and upward in their charges by their courses 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 also of the sons of Aaron the priest which were in the fields of the suburbs of their
cities in every several city the men that were expressed by name to give portions to all the males among the priests and to all that were reckoned by genealogies among the Levites and thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah and wrought that which was good and right and truth before the Lord his God 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
chapter 32 after these things the establishment thereof Sennacherib king of Assyria came and entered into Judah and encamped against the fence cities and thought to win them for himself and when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib was come and that he was purposed to fight against Jerusalem he took counsel with his princes and his mighty men to stop the waters of the fountains which were without the city they did help him so there was gathered much 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 also he strengthened himself and built up all that was broken and raised it up to the towers and another wall without and repaired Milo in the city of David and made darts and shields in abundance 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 spake comfortably to them saying be strong
and courageous be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of Assyria nor for all the multitude that is with him for there be more with us than with him with him is in 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 after this did Sennacherib king of Assyria send his servants to Jerusalem but he himself laid siege against Lachish and all his power with him unto Hezekiah
king of Judah and all Judah that were at Jerusalem saying thus saith Sennacherib king of Assyria whereon do ye trust that ye abide in the siege of Jerusalem doth not Hezekiah persuade you to give over yourselves to die by famine and by thirst saying the lord our god shall deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria 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
know ye not what I and my fathers have done unto all the people of other lands where the gods of the nations of those lands any ways able to deliver their lands out of mine hand who was there among all the gods of those nations that my father's utterly destroyed that could deliver his people out of mine hand that your god should be able to deliver you out of mine hand now therefore let not Hezekiah deceive you nor persuade you on this matter
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 father's how much less shall your god deliver you out of mine hand and his servant spake yet more against the lord god and against his servant Hezekiah he wrote also letters to rail on 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 then they cried with a loud voice in the jews speech unto the people of jerusalem that were on the wall to affright them and to trouble them that they might take the city and they spake against the god of jerusalem as against the gods of the people of the earth which were the work of the hands of man and for this cause Hezekiah the king and the prophet Isaiah the son of Amos prayed and cried to heaven and the lord sent an angel which cut
off all the mighty men of vala 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 was come into the house of his god they that came forth of his own bowels slew him there with the sword thus the lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of jerusalem from the hand of sinekah rib the king of assyria and from the hand of all other and guided them on every side and many brought gifts unto the lord to jerusalem
and presents to Hezekiah king of juda so that he was magnified in the sight of all nations from thenceforth in those days Hezekiah was sick to death and prayed unto the lord and he spake unto him and he gave him a sign 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 juda and jerusalem notwithstanding Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart both he and the
inhabitants of jerusalem so that the wrath of the lord came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah and Hezekiah had exceeding much riches and honor and he made himself treasuries of silver and for gold and for precious stones and for spices and for shields and for all manner of pleasant jewels storehouses also for the increase of corn and wine and oil and stalls for all manner of beasts and coats for flocks moreover he provided him cities and possessions of flocks
and herds and abundance for god had given him substance very much this same Hezekiah also the upper water course of Gion and brought it straight down to the west side of the city of David and Hezekiah prospered in all his works how be it 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 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 in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel and Hezekiah slept with his fathers and they buried him in the chiefest of sepulchres 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 chapter 33 Manasseh was 12 years old when he began to reign and he reigned 55 years in Jerusalem but did that which
was evil in the sight of the lord like unto the abominations of the heathen whom the lord had cast out before the children of Israel for he built again the high places which Hezekiah his father had broken down and he reared up altars to Balaam and made groves and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them also he built altars in the house of the lord whereof the lord had said in Jerusalem shall my name be forever and he built altars for all the host of heaven
in the two courts of the house of the lord and he caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom also he observed times and used enchantments and used witchcraft and dealt with a familiar spirit and with wizards he wrought much evil in the sight of the lord to provoke him to anger and he set a carved image the idol which he had made in the house of God of which God had said to David and to Solomon his son in this house and in Jerusalem
which I have chosen before all the tribes of Israel will I put my name forever neither will I anymore remove the foot of Israel from out of the land which I have appointed for your fathers so that they will take heed to do all that I have commanded them according to the whole law and the statutes and ordinances by the hand of Moses so Manasseh made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to err and to do worse than the heathen whom the lord had destroyed before the
children of Israel and the lord spake to Manasseh and to his people but they would not hearken wherefore the lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria which took Manasseh among the thorns and bound him with fetters and carried him to Babylon and when he was in affliction he besought the lord his god and humbled himself greatly before the god of his fathers and he prayed unto him and he was entreated of him and heard his supplication
and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom then Manasseh knew that the lord he was god now after this he built a wall without the city of David on the west side of Gion in the valley even to the entering inn at the fish gate and compassed about Opho and raised it up a very great height and put captains of war in all the fenced cities of Judah and he took away the strange gods and the idol out of the house of the lord and all the altars that he had built in the mount
of the house of the lord and in Jerusalem and cast them out of the city and he repaired the altar of the lord and sacrificed there on peace offerings and thank offerings and commanded Judah to serve the lord god of Israel nevertheless the people did sacrifice still in the high places yet unto the lord their god only now the rest of the acts of Manasseh and his prayer unto his god and the words of the seers that spake to him in the name of the lord god of Israel behold
they are written in the book of the kings of Israel his prayer also and how god was entreated of him and all his sins and his trespass and places wherein he built high places and set up groves engraving images before he was humbled behold they are written among the sayings of the seers so Manasseh slept with his fathers and they buried him in his own house and Ammon his son reigned in his stead Ammon was two and twenty years old when he began to reign and reigned two years
in Jerusalem but he did that which was evil in the sight of the lord as did Manasseh his father for Ammon sacrificed unto all the carved images which Manasseh his father had made and served them and humbled not himself before the lord as Manasseh his father had humbled himself but Ammon trespassed more and more and his servants conspired against him and slew him in his own house but the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Ammon and the people of
the land made Josiah his son king in his stead end of chapter 33
