II Chronicles 34 · דברי הימים ב

Yoshiyyahu was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Yerushalayim for thirty one years.

And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and followed in the ways of David his father, declining neither to the right hand, nor to the left.

For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek after the God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge Yehuda and Yerushalayim of the high places, and the asherim, and the carved idols, and the molten images.

And they broke down the altars of the Be῾alim in his presence; and the sun images, that were on high above them, he cut down; and the asherim, and the carved idols, and the molten images, he broke in pieces, and made dust of them, and strewed it upon the graves of those who had sacrificed to them.

And he burnt the bones of the priests upon their altars, and cleansed Yehuda and Yerushalayim.

And so he did in the cities of Menashshe, and Efrayim, and Shim῾on even to Naftali, in their ruins round about.

And when he had broken down the altars and the asherim, and had beaten the carved idols into dust, and cut down all the sun images throughout all the land of Yisra᾽el, he returned to Yerushalayim.

Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land, and the house, he sent Shafan the son of Ażalyahu, and Ma῾aseyahu the governor of the city, and Yo᾽aĥ the son of Yo᾽aĥaz the recorder, to repair the house of the Lord his God.

And when they came to Ḥilqiyyahu the high priest, they delivered the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites who kept the doors had gathered from the hand of Menashshe and Efrayim, and from all the remnant of Yisra᾽el, and from all Yehuda and Binyamin; and they returned to Yerushalayim.

And they put it in the hand of the workmen who had the oversight of the house of the Lord, and they gave it to the workmen who were employed in the house of the Lord, to repair and mend the house:

to the carpenters and builders they give it, to buy hewn stone, and timber for couplings, and to make beams for the houses which the kings of Yehuda had destroyed.

And the men did the work faithfully: and their overseers were Yaĥat and ῾Ovadyahu the Levites, of the sons of Merari; and Zekharya and Meshullam, of the sons of the Qehatim, to supervise it; and other of the Levites, all who had skill in instruments of music.

Also they were over bearers of burdens, and they had control over all who were employed in the work in any manner of service: and of the Levites there were scribes, and officers, and gatekeepers.

And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of the Lord, Ḥilqiyyahu the priest found a book of the Tora of the Lord given by Moshe.

And Ḥilqiyyahu answered and said to Shafan the scribe, I have found a book of the Tora in the house of the Lord. And Ḥilqiyyahu delivered the book to Shafan.

And Shafan carried the book to the king, and further brought the king word back, saying, All that was committed to thy servants they are doing.

And they have poured out the money that was found in the house of the Lord, and have delivered it into the hand of the overseers, and into the hand of the workmen.

Then Shafan the scribe told the king, saying, Ḥilqiyyahu the priest has given me a book. And Shafan read it before the king.

And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the Tora, that he rent his clothes.

And the king commanded Ḥilqiyyahu, and Aĥiqam the son of Shafan, and ῾Avdon the son of Mikha, and Shafan the scribe, and ῾Asaya a servant of the king’s, saying,

Go, inquire of the Lord for me, and for those who are left in Yisra᾽el and in Yehuda, concerning the words of the book that is found: for great is the wrath of the Lord that is poured out upon us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord, to do according to all that is written in this book.

And Ḥilqiyyahu, and they whom the king had appointed, went to Ḥulda the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Toqhat, the son of Ḥasra, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Yerushalayim in the second quarter:) and they spoke to her to that effect.

And she said to them, Thus says the Lord God of Yisra᾽el, Tell the man who sent you to me,

Thus says the Lord, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon its inhabitants, namely, all the curses that are written in the book which they have read before the king of Yehuda:

because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense to other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be poured out upon this place, and shall not be quenched.

And as for the king of Yehuda, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, so shall you say to him, Thus says the Lord God of Yisra᾽el concerning the words which thou hast heard;

Because thy heart was submissive, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou didst hear his words against this place, and against its inhabitants, and didst humble thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me; I also have heard thee, says the Lord.

Behold, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace, and thy eyes shall not see all the evil that I will bring upon this place, and upon its inhabitants. So they brought back word to the king.

Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Yehuda and Yerushalayim.

And the king went up into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Yehuda, and the inhabitants of Yerushalayim, and the priests, and the Levites, and all the people, old and young: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant that was found in the house of the Lord.

And the king stood in his place, and made the covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments, and his testimonies, and his statutes, with all his heart, and with all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant which are written in this book.

And he caused all who were present in Yerushalayim and Binyamin to stand to it. And the inhabitants of Yerushalayim did according to the covenant of God, the God of their fathers.

And Yoshiyyahu removed all the abominations out of all the territories that belonged to the children of Yisra᾽el and he enforced all that were present in Yisra᾽el to serve the Lord their God. And all his days they departed not from following the Lord, the God of their fathers.