II Chronicles Chapter 29

II Chronicles 29 — English translation

Translation: THE JPS TANAKH: Gender-Sensitive Edition. Verse numbers match the Hebrew text below.

1. 1Hezekiah became king at the age of twenty-five, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; his mother’s name was Abijah daughter of Zechariah.
2. 2He did what was pleasing to G OD , just as his forefather David had done.
3. 3He, in the first month of the first year of his reign, opened the doors of the House of G OD and repaired them.
4. 4He summoned the priests and the Levites and assembled them in the east square.
5. 5He said to them, “Listen to me, Levites! Sanctify yourselves and sanctify the House of the E TERNAL God of your ancestors, and take the abhorrent things out of the holy place.
6. 6For our ancestors trespassed and did what displeased the E TERNAL our God—whom they forsook as they turned their faces away from the dwelling-place of G OD , turning their backs on it.
7. 7They also shut the doors of the porch and put out the lights; they did not offer incense and did not make burnt offerings in the holy place to the God of Israel.
8. 8G OD ’s wrath was upon Judah and Jerusalem; they were made to be an object of horror, amazement, and hissing—as you see with your own eyes.
9. 9Our ancestors died by the sword, and our sons and daughters and wives are in captivity on account of this.
10. 10Now I wish to make a covenant with the E TERNAL God of Israel, whose rage may hopefully be withdrawn from us.
11. 11Now, my sons, do not be slack, for G OD chose you to be in attendance, to render service, to minister, and to make offerings.”
12. 12So the Levites set to—Mahath son of Amasai and Joel son of Azariah of the sons of Kohath; 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. 13and of the sons of Elizaphan, Shimri and Jeiel; and of the sons of Asaph, Zechariah and Mattaniah;
14. 14and of the sons of Heman, Jehiel and Shimei; and of the sons of Jeduthun, Shemaiah and Uzziel—
15. 15and, gathering their brothers, they sanctified themselves and came, by a command of the king concerning G OD ’s ordinances, to purify the House of G OD .
16. 16The priests went into the House of G OD to purify it, and brought all the impure things they found in the Temple of G OD out into the court of the House of G OD ; [there] the Levites received them, to take them outside to Wadi Kidron.
17. 17They began the sanctification on the first day of the first month; on the eighth day of the month they reached the porch of G OD . They sanctified the House of G OD for eight days, and on the sixteenth day of the first month they finished.
18. 18Then they went into the palace of King Hezekiah and said, “We have purified the whole House of G OD and the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the table of the bread of display and all its utensils;
19. 19and all the utensils that King Ahaz had befouled during his reign, when he trespassed, we have made ready and sanctified. They are standing in front of the altar of G OD .”
20. 20King Hezekiah rose early, gathered the officers of the city, and went up to the House of G OD .
21. 21They brought seven bulls and seven rams and seven lambs and seven he-goats as a purgation offering for the kingdom and for the Sanctuary and for Judah. He ordered the Aaronite priests to offer them on the altar of G OD .
22. 22The cattle were slaughtered, and the priests received the blood and dashed it against the altar; the rams were slaughtered and the blood was dashed against the altar; the lambs were slaughtered and the blood was dashed against the altar.
23. 23The he-goats for the purgation offering were presented to the king and the congregation, who laid their hands upon them.
24. 24The priests slaughtered them and performed the purgation rite with the blood against the altar, to expiate for all Israel, for the king had designated the burnt offering and the purgation offering to be for all Israel.
25. 25He stationed the Levites in the House of G OD with cymbals and harps and lyres, as David and Gad the king’s seer and Nathan the prophet had ordained, for the ordinance was by G OD through those prophets.
26. 26When the Levites were in place with the instruments of David, and the priests with their trumpets,
27. 27Hezekiah gave the order to offer the burnt offering on the altar. When the burnt offering began, the song of G OD and the trumpets began also, together with the instruments of King David of Israel.
28. 28All the congregation prostrated themselves, the song was sung and the trumpets were blown—all this until the end of the burnt offering.
29. 29When the offering was finished, the king and all who were there with him knelt and prostrated themselves.
30. 30King Hezekiah and the officers ordered the Levites to praise G OD in the words of David and Asaph the seer; so they praised rapturously, and they bowed and prostrated themselves.
31. 31Then Hezekiah said, “Now you have consecrated yourselves to G OD ; come, bring sacrifices of well-being and thanksgiving to the House of G OD .” The congregation brought sacrifices of well-being and thanksgiving, and all who felt so moved brought burnt offerings.
32. 32The number of burnt offerings that the congregation brought was 70 cattle, 100 rams, 200 lambs—all these for burnt offerings to G OD .
33. 33The sacred offerings were 600 large cattle and 3,000 small cattle.
34. 34The priests were too few to be able to flay all the burnt offerings, so their kindred, the Levites, reinforced them till the end of the work, and till the [rest of the] priests sanctified themselves. (The Levites were more conscientious about sanctifying themselves than the priests.)
35. 35For beside the large number of burnt offerings, there were the fat parts of the sacrifices of well-being and the libations for the burnt offerings; so the service of the House of G OD was properly accomplished.
36. 36Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced over what God had enabled the people to accomplish, because it had happened so suddenly.

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