2 Kings 23

1 And the king sent, and they gathered unto him all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.

Then the king summoned all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.

2 And the king went up into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, from the small to the great: and he read before their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which had been found in the house of the Lord.

He went to the Lord's Temple with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, together with the priests and the Levites, all the people from the least to the greatest, and he read to them the whole Book of the Agreement that had been discovered in the Lord's Temple.

3 And the king stood upon the stand, and he made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments, and his testimonies and his statutes with all [their] heart and all [their] soul, to maintain the words of this covenant that are written in this book. And all the people entered into the covenant.

The king stood by the pillar and made a solemn agreement before the Lord to follow him and to keep his commandments, laws, and regulations with total dedication, and to observe the requirements of the agreement as written in the book. All the people entered into the agreement.

4 And the king commanded Chilkiyahu the high-priest, and the priests of the second order, and the door-keepers, to carry forth out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels that had been made for Ba'al, and for the Asherah, and for all the host of heaven: and they burnt them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried their ashes unto Beth-el.

Then the king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the priests of second rank, and the doorkeepers to remove from the Lord's Temple everything made for Baal, Asherah, and the worship of sun, moon, and stars. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the Kidron fields and took their ashes to Bethel.

5 And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had appointed that they might burn incense on the high-places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; those also that burnt incense unto Ba'al, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.

He also dismissed the priests appointed by the kings of Judah to present burnt offerings on the high places of the towns of Judah and in the places all around Jerusalem, those who had sacrificed to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations, and to all the powers of heaven.

6 And he brought out the Asherah from the house of the Lord, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burnt it at the brook Kidron, and ground it small to powder, and cast its powder upon the graves of the children of the people.

He removed the Asherah pole from the Lord's Temple and took it to the Kidron Valley outside Jerusalem. He burned it there, ground it into dust, and threw its dust over the graves of the ordinary people.

7 And he pulled down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the Lord, where the women wove hangings for the Asherah.

He also demolished the quarters of the cult prostitutes that were in the Lord's Temple, where the women used to weave tapestries for the Asherah.

8 And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high-places where the priests had burnt incense, from Geba' to Beer-Sheba', and he pulled down the high-places of the gates that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on a man's left at the gate of the city.

Josiah brought to Jerusalem all the priests from the towns of Judah and defiled the high places, from Geba to Beersheba, where the priests had sacrificed burnt offerings. He demolished the high places of the gates, near to the entrance of the gate of Joshua, the governor of the city, which was left of the town gate.

9 Nevertheless the priests of the high-places came not up to the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem; but they ate unleavened bread in the midst of their brethren.

Though the priests of the high places did not serve at the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem, they did eat unleavened bread with their brother priests.

10 And he defiled the Thopheth, which was in the valley Ben-hinnom, so that no man should cause his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech.

He defiled the Topheth altar in the Valley of Ben-hinnom so that no one could sacrifice his son or daughter in the fire to Molech.

11 And he put down the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun, from the entrance of the house of the Lord, by the chamber of Nethan-melech the chamberlain, who was over the suburbs; and the chariots of the sun he burnt with fire.

He removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun from the entrance to the Lord's Temple. They were in the courtyard near the room of a eunuch named Nathan-melech. Josiah also burned the chariots dedicated to the sun.

12 And the altars that were on the roof of the upper-chamber of Achaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Menasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, did the king pull down, and tore them away from there, and cast their dust into the brook Kidron.

He demolished the altars that the kings of Judah had set up on the roof near the upper chamber of Ahaz, and the altars Manasseh had placed in the two courtyards of the Lord's Temple. The king smashed them to pieces and scattered them in the Kidron Valley.

13 And the high-places that were before Jerusalem, which were to the right of the mount of destruction, which Solomon the king of Israel had built for 'Ashtoreth the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Kemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of 'Ammon, did the king defile.

The king also defiled the high places to the east of Jerusalem, to the south of the Mount of Corruption, the places which King Solomon of Israel had built for Ashtoreth, the vile goddess of the Sidonians, for Chemosh, the vile god of the Moabites, and for Molech, the vile god of the Ammonites.

14 And he broke in pieces the standing images, and cut down the Asherah-groves, and filled their places with the bones of men.

He smashed the sacred stone pillars to pieces, chopped down the Asherah poles, and covered the places with human bones.

15 So also the altar that was at Beth-el, the high-place which Jerobo'am the son of Nebat, who induced Israel to sin, had made, —also that altar and the high-place did he pull down; and he burnt the high-place, ground it small to powder, and burnt then the Asherah.

He also demolished the altar at Bethel, the high place set up by Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. Then he burned the high place, ground it to dust, and burned the Asherah pole.

16 And Josiah turned about, and beheld the graves that were there in the mount, and he sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burnt them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the Lord which the man of God proclaimed, who had proclaimed these events.

As Josiah looked around he saw some tombs there on the hill. He had the bones taken from the tombs, and he burned them on the altar to defile it, just as the Lord had said through the man of God who had prophesied these things.

17 Then said he, What kind of monument is that which I see? And the men of the city said to him, It is the grave of the man of God, who came from Judah, and proclaimed these things which thou hast done against the altar of Beth-el.

Then he asked, “Whose gravestone is this that I see?” “It's the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed exactly what you have done to the altar of Bethel,” the townspeople replied.

18 And he said, Let him rest: no man shall disturb his bones. So they saved his bones, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria.

“Let him rest in peace,” said Josiah. “Don't anyone touch his bones.” So they left his bones undisturbed, together with the bones of the prophet who came from Samaria.

19 And also all the houses of the high-places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made as provocations to anger, did Josiah remove, and did to them in accordance with all the acts that he had done in Beth-el.

Josiah destroyed, just as he did at Bethel, all the shrines of the high places in the towns of Samaria that the kings of Israel had built that had angered the Lord.

20 And he slaughtered all the priests of the high-places that were there upon the altars, and burnt men's bones upon them, and returned [then] to Jerusalem.

Josiah slaughtered all the priests who were there at the high places on the altars, and burned human bones on them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.

21 And the king commanded all the people, saying, Keep the passover unto the Lord your God, as it is written in this book of the covenant.

The king sent out an order to all the people, “Observe the Passover of the Lord your God, as it is written in this Book of the Agreement.”

22 For there had not been holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel; nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, and of the kings of Judah;

Such a Passover as this had not been observed from the days of the judges who ruled Israel on through all the days of the kings of Israel and Judah.

23 But in the eighteenth year of king Josiah was this passover holden to the Lord in Jerusalem.

But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, this Passover was observed to honor the Lord in Jerusalem.

24 And also the men of familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the teraphim, and the idols, and all the abominations that were to be seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah clear away; in order that he might accomplish the words of the law which were written in the book that Chilkiyahu the priest had found in the house of the Lord.

In addition, Josiah got rid of the mediums and spiritists, the household gods and idols, and all the disgusting practices that were present in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem. He did this to fulfill the words of the law written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had found in the Lord's Temple.

25 And like unto him there was no king before him, that returned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; and after him there arose none like him.

Never before was there a king like him who committed himself to the Lord in all his thoughts and attitudes, and with all his strength, keeping all the Law of Moses. There was no king like him afterwards either.

26 Notwithstanding this the Lord turned not from the fierceness of his great anger, since his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provokings wherewith Menasseh had provoked him to anger.

However, the Lord had not given up his furious hostility, which burned against Judah because of all that Manasseh had done to anger him.

27 And the Lord said, Also Judah will I remove out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city which I have chosen, even Jerusalem, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there.

So the Lord announced, “I'm also going to banish Judah from my presence, just as I banished Israel. I will abandon this city that I have chosen, Jerusalem, and the Temple regarding which I said, My name will be there.”

28 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah.

The rest of what happened in Josiah's reign, and all he did, are recorded in the Book of Chronicles of the Kings of Judah.

29 In his days went up Pharaoh-nechoh the king of Egypt against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he saw him.

While Josiah was still king, Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, led his army to help the king of Assyria at the Euphrates River. King Josiah took his army to fight him at Megiddo, but when Neco saw Josiah he killed him.

30 And his servants carried him dying in a chariot from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoachaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead.

His servants put his body in a chariot, brought him back from Megiddo to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own tomb. Then the people of the land chose Jehoahaz, son of Josiah, anointed him, and made him king in succession to his father.

31 Twenty and three years old was Jehoachaz when he became king; and three months did he reign in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Chamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.

Jehoahaz was twenty-three when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for three months. His mother's name was Hamutal, daughter of Jeremiah. She came from Libnah.

32 And he did what is evil in the eyes of the Lord, all just as his fathers had done.

He did what was evil in the Lord's sight, just as all his forefathers had done.

33 And Pharaoh-nechoh put him in fetters at Riblah in the land of Chamath, that he should not reign in Jerusalem, and imposed a fine on the land of a hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold.

Pharaoh Neco imprisoned Jehoahaz at Riblah in the land of Hamath to stop him ruling in Jerusalem. He also imposed on Judah a tribute of one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.

34 And Pharaoh-nechoh made Elyakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoyakim, and took Jehoachaz away: and he came to Egypt, and died there.

Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim, son of Josiah, king in succession to his father Josiah, and he changed Eliakim's name to Jehoiakim. Neco took Jehoahaz to Egypt, where he died.

35 And Jehoyakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give the money by the order of Pharaoh: from every one according to his estimation did he exact the silver and gold from the people of the land, to give it unto Pharaoh-nechoh.

Jehoiakim paid the silver and gold to Pharaoh Neco, but in order to meet Pharaoh's demand he taxed the land and required payment of the silver and the gold from the people, each in proportion to their wealth.

36 Twenty and five years old was Jehoyakim when he became king; and eleven years did be reign in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Zebudah, the daughter of Pedayah of Rumah.

Jehoiakim was twenty-five when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for eleven years. His mother's name was Zebidah, daughter of Pedaiah She came from Rumah.

37 And he did what is evil in the eyes of the Lord, all just as his fathers had done.

He did evil in the Lord's sight, just as his forefathers had done.