King Hezekiah of Judah
(2 Kings 18.1-3)1 Hezekiah was 25 years old when he became king of Judah, and he ruled 29 years from Jerusalem. His mother was Abijah daughter of Zechariah. 2 Hezekiah obeyed the Lord by doing right, just as his ancestor David had done.
The Temple Is Purified
3 In the first month of the first year of Hezekiah's rule, he unlocked the doors to the Lord's temple and had them repaired. 4 Then he called the priests and Levites to the east courtyard of the temple 5 and said:
It's time to purify the temple of the Lord God of our ancestors. You Levites must first go through the ceremony to make yourselves clean, then go into the temple and bring out everything that is unclean and unacceptable to the Lord. 6 Some of our ancestors were unfaithful and disobeyed the Lord our God. Not only did they turn their backs on the Lord, but they also completely ignored his temple. 7 They locked the doors, then let the lamps go out and stopped burning incense and offering sacrifices to him. 8 The Lord became terribly angry with the people of Judah and Jerusalem, and everyone was shocked and horrified at what he did to punish them. Not only were 9 our ancestors killed in battle, but our own children and wives were taken captive.
10 So I have decided to renew our agreement with the Lord God of Israel. Maybe then he will stop being so angry with us. 11 Let's not waste any time, my friends. You are the ones who were chosen to be the Lord's priests and to offer him sacrifices.
12-14 When Hezekiah finished talking, the following Levite leaders went to work:
Mahath son of Amasai and Joel son of Azariah from the Kohath clan; Kish son of Abdi and Azariah son of Jehallelel from the Merari clan; Joah son of Zimmah and Eden son of Joah from the Gershon clan; Shimri and Jeuel from the Elizaphan clan; Zechariah and Mattaniah from the Asaph clan; Jehuel and Shimei from the Heman clan; Shemaiah and Uzziel from the Jeduthun clan.
15 These leaders gathered together the rest of the Levites, and they all went through the ceremony to make themselves clean. Then they began to purify the temple according to the Law of the Lord, just as Hezekiah had commanded.
16 The priests went into the temple and carried out everything that was unclean. They put these things in the courtyard, and from there, the Levites carried them outside the city to Kidron Valley.
17 The priests and Levites began their work on the first day of the first month. It took them one week to purify the courtyards of the temple and another week to purify the temple. So on the sixteenth day of that same month 18 they went back to Hezekiah and said:
Your Majesty, we have finished our work. The entire temple is now pure again, and so is the altar and its utensils, as well as the table for the sacred loaves of bread and its utensils. 19 And we have brought back all the things that King Ahaz took from the temple during the time he was unfaithful to God. We purified them and put them back in front of the altar.
Worship in the Temple
20 At once, Hezekiah called together the officials of Jerusalem, and they went to the temple. 21 They brought with them seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven goats as sacrifices to take away the sins of Hezekiah's family and of the people of Judah, as well as to purify the temple. Hezekiah told the priests, who were descendants of Aaron, to sacrifice these animals on the altar.
22 The priests killed the bulls, the rams, and the lambs, then splattered the blood on the altar. 23 They took the goats to Hezekiah and the worshipers, and they laid their hands on the animals. 24 The priests then killed the goats and splattered the blood on the altar as a sacrifice to take away the sins of everyone in Israel, because Hezekiah had commanded that these sacrifices be made for all the people of Israel.
25 Next, Hezekiah assigned the Levites to their places in the temple. He gave them cymbals, harps, and other stringed instruments, according to the instructions that the Lord had given King David and the two prophets, Gad and Nathan. 26 The Levites were ready to play the instruments that had belonged to David; the priests were ready to blow the trumpets.
27 As soon as Hezekiah gave the signal for the sacrifices to be burned on the altar, the musicians began singing praises to the Lord and playing their instruments, 28 and everyone worshiped the Lord. This continued until the last animal was sacrificed.
29 After that, Hezekiah and the crowd of worshipers bowed down and worshiped the Lord. 30 Then Hezekiah and his officials ordered the Levites to sing the songs of praise that David and Asaph the prophet had written. And so they bowed down and joyfully sang praises to the Lord.
31 Hezekiah said to the crowd, “Now that you are once again acceptable to the Lord, bring sacrifices and offerings to give him thanks.”
The people did this, and some of them voluntarily brought animals to be offered as sacrifices. 32 Seventy bulls, 100 rams, and 200 lambs were brought as sacrifices to please the Lord; 33 600 bulls and 3,000 sheep were brought as sacrifices to ask the Lord's blessing. 34 There were not enough priests to skin all these animals, because many of the priests had not taken the time to go through the ceremony to make themselves clean. However, since all the Levites had made themselves clean, they helped the priests until the last animal was skinned. 35 Besides all the sacrifices that were burned on the altar, the fat from the other animal sacrifices was burned, and the offerings of wine were poured over the altar.
So the temple was once again used for worshiping the Lord. 36 Hezekiah and the people of Judah celebrated, because God had helped them make this happen so quickly.
1 Hezekiah began to reigne, when he was fiue and twentie yeere olde, and reigned nine and twentie yeres in Ierusalem: and his mothers name was Abiiah the daughter of Zechariah. 2 And hee did vprightly in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Dauid his father had done. 3 He opened the doores of the house of the Lord in the first yeere, and in the first moneth of his reigne, and repared them. 4 And he brought in the Priests and the Leuites, and gathered them into the East streete, 5 And said vnto them, Heare me, ye Leuites: sanctifie nowe your selues, and sanctifie the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and cary forth the filthinesse out of the Sanctuarie. 6 For our fathers haue trespassed, and done euill in the eyes of the Lord our God, and haue forsaken him, and turned away their faces from the Tabernacle of the Lord, and turned their backes. 7 They haue also shut the doores of ye porch, and quenched the lampes, and haue neither burnt incense, nor offred burnt offrings in the Sanctuarie vnto the God of Israel. 8 Wherfore the wrath of the Lord hath bin on Iudah and Ierusalem: and he hath made them a scattering, a desolation, and an hissing, as ye see with your eyes. 9 For lo, our fathers are fallen by the sword, and our sonnes, and our daughters, and our wiues are in captiuitie for the same cause. 10 Now I purpose to make a couenant with the Lord God of Israel, that he may turne away his fierce wrath from vs. 11 Now my sonnes, be not deceiued: for the Lord hath chosen you to stand before him, to serue him, and to be his ministers, and to burne incense. 12 Then the Leuites arose, Mahath ye sonne of Amashai, and Ioel the sonne of Azariah of the sonnes of the Kohathites: and of the sonnes of Merari, Kish the sonne of Abdi, and Azariah the sonne of Iehalelel: and of the Gershonites, Ioah the sonne of Zimmah, and Eden the sonne of Ioah: 13 And of the sonnes of Elizaphan, Shimri, and Iehiel: and of the sonnes of Asaph, Zechariah, and Mattaniah: 14 And of the sonnes of Heman, Iehiel, and Shimei: and of the sonnes of Ieduthun, Shemaiah and Vzziel. 15 And they gathered their brethren, and sanctified themselues and came according to the commandement of the King, and by the words of the Lord, for to clense the house of the Lord. 16 And the Priests went into the inner partes of the house of the Lord, to clense it, and brought out all the vncleannesse that they founde in the Temple of the Lord, into the court of the house of the Lord: and the Leuites tooke it, to cary it out vnto the brooke Kidron. 17 They began the first day of the first moneth to sanctifie it, and the eight day of the moneth came they to the porche of the Lord: so they sanctified the house of the Lord in eight dayes, and in the sixeteenth day of the first moneth they made an ende. 18 Then they went in to Hezekiah ye King, and sayde, We haue clensed all the house of the Lord and the altar of burnt offring, with all the vessels thereof, and the shewbread table, with all the vessels thereof: 19 And all the vessels which King Ahaz had cast aside when he reigned, and transgressed, haue we prepared and sanctified: and beholde, they are before the altar of the Lord. 20 And Hezekiah the King rose early, and gathered the princes of the citie, and went vp to the house of the Lord. 21 And they brought seuen bullockes, and seuen rammes, and seuen lambes, and seuen hee goates, for a sinne offring for the kingdome, and for the sanctuarie, and for Iudah. And he commanded the Priests the sonnes of Aaron, to offer them on the altar of the Lord. 22 So they slewe the bullockes, and the Priests receiued the blood, and sprinkled it vpon the altar: they slew also the rammes and sprinkled the blood vpon the altar, and they slew the lambes, and they sprinkled the blood vpon the altar. 23 Then they brought the hee goates for the sinne offring before the King and the Congregation, and they layde their hands vpon them. 24 And the Priests slewe them, and with the blood of them they clensed the altar to reconcile all Israel: for the King had commanded for all Israel the burnt offring and the sinne offring. 25 He appointed also the Leuites in the house of the Lord with cymbales, with violes, and with harpes, according to the commandement of Dauid, and Gad the Kings Seer, and Nathan the Prophet: for the commandement was by the hande of the Lord, and by the hande of his Prophets. 26 And the Leuites stood with the instruments of Dauid, and the Priests with the trumpets. 27 And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offring vpon the altar: and when the burnt offring began, the song of the Lord beganne with the trumpets, and the instruments of Dauid King of Israel. 28 And al the Congregation worshipped, singing a song, and they blew the trumpets: all this continued vntill the burnt offring was finished. 29 And when they had made an ende of offring, the King and all that were present with him, bowed themselues, and worshipped. 30 Then Hezekiah the King and the princes commanded the Leuites to prayse the Lord with the wordes of Dauid, and of Asaph the Seer. so they praysed with ioy, and they bowed themselues, and worshipped. 31 And Hezekiah spake, and sayde, Now ye haue consecrate your selues to the Lord: come neere and bring the sacrifices and offerings of prayse into the house of the Lord. And the Congregation brought sacrifices; and offrings of prayses, and euery man that was willing in heart, offred burnt offrings. 32 And the nomber of the burnt offrings, which the Congregation brought, was seuentie bullockes, an hundreth rammes, and two hundreth lambes: all these were for a burnt offring to the Lord: 33 And for sanctification sixe hundreth bullockes, and three thousand sheepe. 34 But the Priests were too few, and were not able to flay all the burnt offrings: therefore their brethren the Leuites did helpe them, til they had ended the worke, and vntill other Priests were sanctified: for the Leuites were more vpright in heart to sanctifie themselues, then the Priests. 35 And also the burnt offerings were many with the fat of the peace offrings and the drinke offrings for the burnt offring. so the seruice of the house of the Lord was set in order. 36 Then Hezekiah reioyced and all the people, that God had made the people so ready: for the thing was done suddenly.