2 Chronicles 34:1–19

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Josiah Reigns in Judah

34 mJosiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. 2 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, and walked in the ways of David his father; and he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. 3 For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet a boy, he began to seek the God of David his father, and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the nAsherim, and the carved and the metal images. 4 And they chopped down the altars of the Baals in his presence, and he cut down the oincense altars that stood above them. And he broke in pieces the nAsherim and the carved and the metal images, and he made dust of them and oscattered it over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. 5 pHe also burned the bones of the priests on their altars and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem. 6 And in the qcities of Manasseh, Ephraim, and Simeon, and as far as Naphtali, in their ruins1 all around, 7 he broke down the altars and beat the nAsherim and the images rinto powder and cut down all the incense altars throughout all the land of Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem.

The Book of the Law Found

8 sNow in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had cleansed the land and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah the tgovernor of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz, uthe recorder, to repair the house of the Lord his God. 9 They came to vHilkiah the high priest and gave him the money that had been brought into the house of God, which the Levites, the keepers of the threshold, had collected from qManasseh and Ephraim and from all the remnant of Israel and from all Judah and Benjamin and from the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10 And they gave it to the workmen who were working in the house of the Lord. And the workmen who were working in the house of the Lord gave it for repairing and restoring the house. 11 They gave it to the carpenters and the builders to buy quarried stone, and timber for binders and wbeams for the buildings that the kings of Judah had let go to ruin. 12 And the men did the work faithfully. Over them were set Jahath and Obadiah the Levites, of the sons of Merari, and Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites, to have oversight. xThe Levites, all who were skillful with instruments of music, 13 were over ythe burden-bearers and directed all who did work in every kind of service, and some of the Levites were scribes and officials and gatekeepers.

14 While they were bringing out the money that had been brought into the house of the Lord, vHilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the Lord given through2 Moses. 15 Then Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan. 16 Shaphan brought the book to the king, and further reported to the king, “All that was committed to your servants they are doing. 17 They have emptied out the money that was found in the house of the Lord and have given it into the hand of the overseers and the workmen.” 18 Then Shaphan the secretary told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read from it before the king.

19 And when the king heard the words of the Law, zhe tore his clothes.