2 Chronicles 29

1 Hezekiah began to reign when he was twenty-five years old; he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Abijah; she was the daughter of Zechariah.

And, Hezekiah, began to reign when he was twenty-five years old, and, twenty-nine years, reigned he in Jerusalem, —and, the name of his mother, was Abijah, daughter of Zechariah.

2 He did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh, just as David his father had done.

And he did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh, —according to all that, David his father, had done.

3 In the first year of his reign, in the first month, Hezekiah opened the doors of the house of Yahweh and repaired them.

He, in the first year of his reign, in the first month, opened the doors of the house of Yahweh, and repaired them.

4 He brought in the priests and the Levites, and gathered them together into the courtyard on the east side.

And he brought in the priests, and the Levites, —and gathered them together in the broadway on the east;

5 He said to them, “Listen to me, you Levites! Consecrate yourselves, and consecrate the house of Yahweh, the God of your ancestors, and carry away the filthiness from the holy place.

and said unto them, Hear me, O Levites! Now, hallow yourselves, and hallow the house of Yahweh, God of your fathers, and take forth the impure thing out of the holy place.

6 For our ancestors trespassed and did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh our God; they forsook him, turned away their faces from the place where Yahweh lives, and turned their backs on it.

For our fathers have acted unfaithfully and done the thing that was wicked in the eyes of Yahweh our God, and have forsaken him, -and have turned round their faces from the habitation of Yahweh, and have offered their backs.

7 Also they shut up the doors of the porch and put out the lamps; they did not burn incense or offer burnt offerings in the holy place to the God of Israel.

Moreover they have shut up the doors of the porch, and have quenched the lamps, and, incense, have they not burned, -and, ascending-sacrifice, have they not caused to go up in the holy place, unto the God of Israel.

8 Therefore the wrath of Yahweh had fallen on Judah and Jerusalem, and he has made them to be an object of terror, of horror, and of scorn, as you can see with your own eyes.

Thus hath it come to pass, that, the wrath of Yahweh, hath been upon Judah and Jerusalem, —and he hath delivered them up as a terror and as an astonishment and as hissing, even as, ye, can see with your own eyes.

9 This is why our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons, our daughters, and our wives are in captivity for this.

And lo! our fathers have fallen by the sword, and, our sons and our daughters and our wives, are in captivity for this.

10 Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with Yahweh, the God of Israel, so that his fierce anger may turn away from us.

Now, is it near my heart, to solemnise a covenant unto Yahweh, God of Israel, —that he may turn from him the glow of his anger.

11 My sons, do not be lazy now, for Yahweh has chosen you to stand before him, to worship him, and that you should be his servants and burn incense.”

My sons! now, do not be faulty, —for, of you, hath Yahweh made choice, to stand before him, and to wait upon him, and to be his attendants and burners of incense.

12 Then the Levites arose: Mahath son of Amasai, and Joel son of Azariah, of the people of the Kohathites; and of the people of Merari, Kish son of Abdi, and Azariah son of Jehallelel; and of the Gershonites, Joah son of Zimmah, and Eden son of Joah;

Then arose the Levites—Mahath son of Amasai, and Joel son of Azariah, of the sons of the Kohathites, and, of the sons of Merari, Kish son of Abdi, and Azariah son of Jehallelel, —and, of the Gershonites, Joah son of Zimmah, and Eden son of Joah;

13 of the sons of Elizaphan, Shimri and Jeuel; and of the sons of Asaph, Zechariah and Mattaniah;

and, of the sons of Elizaphan, Shimri and Jeiel, —and, of the sons of Asaph, Zechariah, and Mattaniah;

14 of the sons of Heman, Jehuel and Shimei; and of the sons of Jeduthun, Shemaiah and Uzziel.

and, of the sons of Heman, Jehiel and Shimei, —and, of the sons of Jeduthun, Shemaiah, and Uzziel;

15 They gathered their brothers, they consecrated themselves, and they went in, as the king commanded, following the words of Yahweh, to cleanse the house of Yahweh.

and they gathered together their brethren, who hallowed themselves, and came in according to the command of the king, in the things of Yahweh, —to purify the house of Yahweh.

16 The priests went in to the inner part of the house of Yahweh to cleanse it; they brought out all the filth that they found in the temple of Yahweh into the courtyard of the house. The Levites took it to carry it out to the brook Kidron.

So the priests entered into the inner part of the house of Yahweh, to make purification, and they brought out every unclean thing which they found in the temple of Yahweh, into the court of the house of Yahweh, —where the Levites received it, to carry it forth to the Kidron ravine outside.

17 Now they began the consecration on the first day of the first month. By the eighth day of the month they reached the porch of Yahweh. Then for eight more days they consecrated the house of Yahweh. On the sixteenth day of the first month they finished.

And they began, on the first of the first month, to hallow, —and, on the eighth day of the month, they came to the porch of Yahweh, so they hallowed the house of Yahweh in eight days, —and, on the sixteenth day of the first month, they finished.

18 Then they went to Hezekiah, the king, inside the palace and said, “We have cleansed all the house of Yahweh, the altar for burnt offerings with all its implements, and the table of the bread of the presence, with all its implements.

Then came they in unto Hezekiah the king, and said, We have purified all the house of Yahweh, —the altar of ascending-sacrifice, and all the utensils thereof, and the table for setting in array, and all the utensils thereof.

19 So we have prepared and we have consecrated all the items that King Ahaz removed when he acted unfaithfully during his reign. See, they are in front of the altar of Yahweh.”

And, all the utensils which King Ahaz in his reign rejected when he acted unfaithfully, have we made ready and hallowed, —and, there they are, before the altar of Yahweh.

20 Then Hezekiah the king rose early in the morning and gathered the leaders of the city; he went up to the house of Yahweh.

So Hezekiah the king rose up early, and gathered together the rulers of the city, —and went up to the house of Yahweh.

21 They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats as a sin offering for the kingdom, for the sanctuary, and for Judah. He commanded the priests, the sons of Aaron, to offer them on the altar of Yahweh.

And they brought in seven bullocks, and seven rams, and seven young sheep, and seven he-goats for bearing sin, for the kingdom and for the sanctuary and for Judah, —and he bade the sons of Aaron, the priests, cause them to ascend upon the altar of Yahweh.

22 So they killed the bulls, and the priests received the blood and sprinkled it on the altar. Then they killed the rams and sprinkled their blood on the altar; and they also killed the lambs and sprinkled their blood on the altar.

So they slaughtered the bullocks, and the priests received the blood, and dashed it against the altar, —and they slaughtered the rams, and dashed the blood against the altar, and slaughtered the young sheep, and dashed the blood against the altar.

23 They brought the male goats for the sin offering before the king and the assembly; they laid their hands on them.

And they brought near the he-goats for bearing sin, before the king, and the convocation, —and they leaned their hands upon them;

24 The priests killed them, and they made a sin offering with their blood on the altar to make atonement for all Israel, for the king had commanded that a burnt offering and a sin offering should be made for all Israel.

and the priests slaughtered them, and sin-cleansed, with their blood, the altar, to put a propitiatory-covering over all Israel, -because, for all Israel, did the king appoint the ascending-sacrifice and the offering for bearing sin.

25 Hezekiah placed the Levites in the house of Yahweh with cymbals, harps, and lyres, arranging them by the command of David, Gad, the king's seer, and Nathan, the prophet, for the command was from Yahweh by means of his prophets.

And he caused the Levites to stand in the house of Yahweh, with cymbals and with harps and with lyres, by the commandment of David, and of Gad the seer of the king, and of Nathan the prophet, —for, by the hand of Yahweh, came the commandment by the hand of his prophets.

26 The Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets.

So the Levites took their stand, with the instruments of David, and the priests, with the trumpets.

27 Hezekiah commanded them to offer the burnt offering on the altar. When the burnt offering began, the song of Yahweh began also, with the trumpets, together with the instruments of David, king of Israel.

And Hezekiah gave word, to cause the ascending-sacrifice to go up on the altar, —and, when the ascending-sacrifice began, the singing unto Yahweh began, and the trumpets, even under the direction of the instruments of David, king of Israel.

28 All the assembly worshiped, the singers sang, and the trumpeters played; all this continued until the burnt offering was finished.

And, all the convocation, were bowing themselves in prostration, and, the song, was resounding and the trumpets were blowing, -the whole, until the completing of the ascending-sacrifice.

29 When they had finished the offerings, the king and all who were present with him bowed and worshiped.

And, when the offering was complete, the king knelt down and all who were present with him, and bowed themselves in prostration.

30 Moreover, Hezekiah, the king, and the leaders commanded the Levites to sing praises to Yahweh with the words of David and of Asaph, the seer. They sang praises with gladness, and they bowed down and worshiped.

And Hezekiah the king and the rulers gave word to the Levites, to offer praise unto Yahweh, in the words of David, and of Asaph the seer, —so they offered praise right joyfully, and bent their heads and bowed themselves in prostration.

31 Then Hezekiah said, “Now you have consecrated yourselves to Yahweh. Come here and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of Yahweh.” The assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all who had a willing heart brought burnt offerings.

Then responded Hezekiah and said—Now, have ye consecrated yourselves unto Yahweh. Draw near, and bring in sacrifices and thank-offerings unto the house of Yahweh, -So the convocation brought sacrifices and thank-offerings, and, everyone of a willing heart, [brought] ascending-sacrifices.

32 The number of the burnt offerings that the assembly brought was seventy bulls, one hundred rams, and two hundred male lambs. All these were for a burnt offering to Yahweh.

And it came to pass that, the number of ascending-sacrifices which the convocation brought, was—seventy bullocks, and a hundred rams, and two hundred young sheep, —as an ascending-sacrifice unto Yahweh, all these.

33 The consecrated offerings were six hundred oxen and three thousand sheep.

But, the hallowed beasts, were six hundred bullocks, and three thousand sheep.

34 But the priests were too few to skin all the burnt offerings, so their brothers, the Levites, helped them until the work was done, and until the priests could consecrate themselves, for the Levites had been more careful to consecrate themselves than the priests.

Only, the priests, were too few, and were unable to flay all the ascending-sacrifices, —so their brethren the Levites strengthened them, until the work was complete and until the priests had hallowed themselves, for, the Levites, were more upright in heart to hallow themselves, than the priests.

35 In addition, there were very many burnt offerings; they were performed with the fat of the fellowship offerings, and there were drink offerings for every burnt offering. So the service of the house of Yahweh was set in order.

Moreover also, the ascending-sacrifices, were in abundance, with the fat portions of the peace-offerings, and with the drink-offerings to every ascending-sacrifice, -thus was established the service of the house of Yahweh.

36 Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people also, because of what God had prepared for the people, for the work had been done quickly.

And Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people, because God had established it for the people, —for, suddenly, had the thing come about.