Chapter 12
CHAPTER 34-36 This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. CHAPTER 34 Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem one and thirty years. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the
ways of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand nor to the left. For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father, and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places and the groves, and the carved images and the molten images, and they break down the altars of Balaam in his presence, and the images that were on high above them he cut down, and the groves and the carved
images and the molten images he break in pieces, and made dust of them, and strode it upon the graves of them that had sacrificed unto them, and he burnt the bones of the priests upon their altars, and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem. And so did he in the cities of Manasseh and Ephraim and Simeon, even unto Nephtali with their mattocks round about. And when he had broken down the altars and the groves, and had beaten the graven images into powder, and cut down all idols throughout
all the land of Israel, he returned to Jerusalem. Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land and the house, he sent Shefan the son of Azaliah, and Messiah the governor of the city, and Joah the son of Joaz, the recorder to repair the house of the Lord his God. And when they came to Hilkiah the high priest, they delivered the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites that kept the doors had gathered of the hand of Manasseh and Ephraim,
and of all the remnant of Israel, and of all Judah and Benjamin. And they returned to Jerusalem, and they put it in the hand of the workmen that had the oversight of the house of the Lord, and they gave it to the workmen that wrought in the house of the Lord to repair and amend the house. Even to the artificers and builders gave they it to buy hewn stone and timber for couplings, and to floor the houses which the kings of Judah had destroyed. And the men did the work faithfully,
and the overseers of them were Jehoth and Obadiah the Levites of the sons of Merari and Zechariah, and Mishalim of the sons of the Cothites, to set it forward and other of the Levites all that could skill of instruments of music. Also they were over the bearers of burdens, and were overseers of all that wrought the work in any manner of service, and of the Levites there were scribes and officers and boarders. And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of
the Lord, Hilkiah the priest found a book of the law of the Lord given by Moses. And Hilkiah answered and said to Shafan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the Lord. And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shafan, and Shafan carried the book to the king and brought the king word back again saying all that was committed to thy servants they do it. And they have gathered together the money that was found in the house of the Lord and have delivered it into the hand of
the overseers and to the hand of the workmen. Then Shafan the scribe told the king saying, Hilkiah the priest hath given me a book and Shafan read it before the king. And it came to pass when the king had heard the words of the law that he rent his clothes. And the king commanded Hilkiah and Ahicham the son of Shafan and Abdon the son of Bacah. And Shafan the scribe and Asahiah a servant of the king's saying, Go inquire of the Lord for me and for them that are left in Israel and in Judah
concerning the words of the book that is found. For great is the wrath of the Lord that is poured out upon us because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord. To do after all that is written in this book and Hilkiah and they that the king had appointed went to hold the prophetess the wife of Shulam the son of Tikvah the son of Hasra keeper of the wardrobe. Now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college and they spake to her to that effect and she answered them, Thus saith the Lord God of
Israel tell ye the man that sent you to me. Thus saith the Lord behold I will bring evil upon this place and upon the inhabitants thereof even all the purses that are written in the book which they have read before the king of Judah because they have forsaken me and have burned incense unto other gods that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands therefore my wrath shall be poured out upon this place and shall not be quenched. And as for the king of Judah who
sent you to inquire of the Lord so shall ye say unto him thus saith the Lord God of Israel concerning the words which thou hast heard because thine heart was tender and thou dis- humble thyself before God when thou heardest his words against this place and against the inhabitants thereof and humble thyself before me and dis- rent thy clothes and weep before me I have even heard thee also saith the Lord behold I will gather thee to thy fathers and
thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace neither shall thine eyes see all the evil that I will bring upon this place and upon the inhabitants of the same. So they brought the king word again then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem and the king went up into the house of the Lord and all the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the priests and the Levites and all the people great and small and he read in
their ears all the words of the book of the covenant that was found in the house of the Lord and the king stood in his place and made a covenant before the Lord to walk after the Lord and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all his heart and with all his soul to perform the words of the covenant which are written in this book and he caused all that were present in Jerusalem and Benjamin to stand to it and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did
according to the covenant of God the God of their fathers and Josiah took away all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the children of Israel and made all that were present in Israel to serve even to serve the Lord their God and all his days they departed not from following the Lord the God of their fathers. Chapter 35. Moreover Josiah kept a Passover unto the Lord in Jerusalem and they killed the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month
and he set the priest in their charges and encouraged them to the service of the house of the Lord and said unto the Levites that taught all Israel which were holy unto the Lord put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel did build it shall not be a burden upon your shoulders serve now the Lord your God and his people Israel and prepare yourselves by the houses of your fathers after your courses according to the writing of David king of Israel
and according to the writing of Solomon his son and stand in the holy place according to the divisions of the families of the fathers of your brethren the people and after the division of the families of the Levites so kill the Passover and sanctify yourselves and prepare your brethren that they may do according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses and Josiah gave to the people of the flock lambs and kids all for the Passover offerings for all that were present to the number
of thirty thousand and three thousand bullocks these were of the king's substance and his princes gave willingly unto the people to the priest and to the Levites Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel rulers of the house of God gave unto the priest for the Passover offering 2600 small cattle and 300 oxen Conan Ia also and Shemaiah and Nathanael his brethren and hash Abaya and Jehiel and Josabat chief of the Levites gave unto the Levites for Passover offerings 5000 small cattle and 500 oxen
so the service was prepared and the priest stood in their place and the Levites and their courses according to the King's commandment and they killed the Passover and the priest sprinkled the blood from their hands and the Levites flayed them and they removed the burnt offerings that they might give according to the divisions of the families of the people to offer unto the Lord as it is written in the book of Moses and so did they with the oxen and they roasted the Passover
with fire according to the ordinance but the other holy offerings sawed they in pots and cauldrons and in pans and divided them speedily among all the people and afterward they made ready for themselves and for the priest because the priest the sons of Aaron were busy in offering of burnt offerings and the fat until night therefore the Levites prepared for themselves and for the priest and the sons of Aaron and the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place according to the
commandment of David and Asaph and Heman and Jaduthon the King Seir and the porters waited at every gate they might not depart from their service for their brethren the Levites prepared for them so all the service of the Lord was prepared the same day to keep the Passover and to offer burnt offerings upon the altar of the Lord according to the commandment of King Josiah and the children of Israel that were present kept the Passover at that time and the feast of unleavened
bread seven days and there was no Passover like to that kept in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet neither did all the kings of Israel keep such a Passover as Josiah kept and the priest and the Levites and all Judah and Israel that were present and the inhabitants of Jerusalem in the 18th year of the reign of Josiah was this Passover kept after all this when Josiah had prepared the temple Niko king of Egypt came up to fight against Char-Chemish by Euphrates and Josiah went out
against him but he sent ambassadors to him saying what have I to do with thee thou king of Judah I come not against thee this day but against the house wherewith I have war for God commanded me to make haste forbear thee from meddling with God who is with me that he destroy thee not nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him but disguised himself that he might fight with him and hearkened not unto the words of Niko from the mouth of God and came to fight in the valley
of Megiddo and the archer shot at King Josiah and the king said to his servants have me away for I am sore wounded his servants therefore took him out of that chariot and put him in the second chariot that he had and they brought him to Jerusalem and he died and was buried in one of the sepulchres of his fathers and all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah and Jeremiah lamented and all the singing men and the singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day
and made them an ordinance in Israel and behold they were written in the lamentations now the rest of the acts of Josiah and his goodness according to that which was written in the law of the Lord and his deeds first and last behold they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah chapter 36 then the people of the land took Geoahaz the son of Josiah and made him king in his father's stead in Jerusalem Geoahaz was 20 and three years old when he began to reign
and he reigned three months in Jerusalem and the king of Egypt put him down at Jerusalem and condemned the land in a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold and the king of Egypt made Iliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem and turned his name to Geoakim. Niko took Geoahaz his brother and carried him to Egypt Geoakim was 20 and five years old when he began to reign and he reigned 11 years in Jerusalem and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God
against him came up Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and bound him in fetters to carry him to Babylon Nebuchadnezzar also carried the vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon and put them in his temple at Babylon now the rest of the acts of Geoakim and his abominations which he did and that which was found in him behold they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah and Geoakim his son reigned in his stead Geoakim was eight years old when he began to reign and he
reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord and when the year was expired King Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon with the goodly vessels of the house of the Lord and made Zedekiah his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign and reign 11 years in Jerusalem and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the
prophet speaking from the mouth of the Lord and he also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar who had made him swear by God but he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart from turning unto the Lord God of Israel moreover all the chief of the priests and the people transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen and polluted the house of the Lord which he had hallowed in Jerusalem and the Lord God of their father sent to them messengers rising up at times and
sending because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place but they mocked the God and despised his words and misused his prophets until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people till there was no remedy therefore he brought upon them the king of the Chaldees who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary and had no compassion upon young men or maiden old men or him that stooped of age he gave them all into his
hand and all the vessels of the house of God great and small the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king and his princes all these he brought to Babylon and they burnt the house of God and break down the wall of Jerusalem and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof and them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom
of Persia to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths for as long as she lay desolate she kept Sabbath to fulfill three score and ten years now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia that the word of the Lord spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia and he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and put it also in writing saying thus saith Cyrus king of
Persia all the kingdoms of the earth hath the Lord God of heaven given me and he have charged me to build him in house in Jerusalem which is in Judah who is there among you of all his people the Lord his God be with him and let him go up end of chapter 36 end of second Chronicles recording by Simon
