2 Chronicles 34
The Reign of
Josiah |
2 Kgs. 22.1, 2 |
1 |
Josi'ah Jer. 3.6 was eight years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned in Jerusalem one and thirty years.
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2 |
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.
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Josiah's
Reforms |
2 Kgs. 23.4-20 |
3 |
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.
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4 |
And they brake down the altars of Ba'alim
in his presence; 2 Kgs. 21.3 · 2 Chr. 33.3 and the images, that were on high above them, he cut
down; and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images,
he brake in pieces, and made dust of them, and strewed it upon the graves of them that had sacrificed unto
them.
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5 |
And he burnt the bones of the priests
upon their altars, 1 Kgs. 13.2 and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem.
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6 |
And so did he in the cities of
Manas'seh, and E'phra-im, and Simeon, even unto Naph'tali, with
their mattocks round about.
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7 |
And when he had broken down the altars
and the groves, and had beaten the graven images into powder, and
cut down all the idols throughout all the land of Israel, he
returned to Jerusalem.
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The Book of the Law
Discovered |
2 Kgs. 22.3--23.3 |
8 |
Now in the eighteenth year of his
reign, when he had purged the land, and the house, he sent Shaphan
the son of Azali'ah, and Ma-asei'ah the governor of the city, and
Jo'ah the son of Jo'ahaz the recorder, to repair the house of the
LORD his God.
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9 |
And when they came to Hilki'ah 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 Manas'seh and E'phra-im, and of all the remnant of Israel, and of
all Judah and Benjamin; and they returned to Jerusalem.
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10 |
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:
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11 |
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.
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12 |
And the men did the work faithfully: and
the overseers of them were Jahath and Obadi'ah, the Levites,
of the sons of Mera'ri; and Zechari'ah and Meshul'lam, of the sons
of the Ko'hathites, to set it forward; and other of the Levites, all that could skill of instruments of music.
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13 |
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 porters.
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14 |
And when they brought out the money
that was brought into the house of the LORD,
Hilki'ah the priest found a book of the law of the LORD given by Moses.
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15 |
And Hilki'ah answered and said to Shaphan
the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the
LORD. And Hilki'ah delivered the book to
Shaphan.
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16 |
And Shaphan carried the book to the king,
and brought the king word back again, saying, All that was committed
to thy servants, they do it.
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17 |
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.
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18 |
Then Shaphan the scribe told the king,
saying, Hilki'ah the priest hath given me a book. And Shaphan read
it before the king.
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19 |
And it came to pass, when the king had
heard the words of the law, that he rent his clothes.
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20 |
And the king commanded Hilki'ah, and
Ahi'kam the son of Shaphan, and Abdon the son of Micah, and Shaphan
the scribe, and Asai'ah a servant of the king's, saying,
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21 |
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.
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22 |
And Hilki'ah, and they that the
king had appointed, went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife
of Shallum the son of Tikvath, the son of Hasrah, keeper of the
wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they
spake to her to that effect.
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23 |
And she answered them, Thus saith the
LORD God of Israel, Tell ye the man that sent
you to me,
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24 |
Thus saith the LORD,
Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants
thereof, even all the curses that are written in the book
which they have read before the king of Judah:
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25 |
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.
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26 |
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;
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27 |
Because thine heart was tender, and thou
didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words
against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and
humbledst thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep
before me; I have even heard thee also, saith the LORD.
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28 |
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.
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29 |
Then the king sent and gathered
together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
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30 |
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.
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31 |
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.
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32 |
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.
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33 |
And Josi'ah 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.
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