Josiah Does Away with Pagan Worship
(2 Chronicles 34.3-72 29-33)1 King Josiah summoned all the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 and together they went to the Temple, accompanied by the priests and the prophets and all the rest of the people, rich and poor alike. Before them all the king read aloud the whole book of the covenant which had been found in the Temple. 3 He stood by the royal column and made a covenant with the Lord to obey him, to keep his laws and commands with all his heart and soul, and to put into practice the demands attached to the covenant, as written in the book. And all the people promised to keep the covenant.
4 Then Josiah ordered the High Priest Hilkiah, his assistant priests, and the guards on duty at the entrance to the Temple to bring out of the Temple all the objects used in the worship of Baal, of the goddess Asherah, and of the stars. The king burned all these objects outside the city near Kidron Valley and then had the ashes taken to Bethel. 5 He removed from office the priests that the kings of Judah had ordained to offer sacrifices on the pagan altars in the cities of Judah and in places near Jerusalem—all the priests who offered sacrifices to Baal, to the sun, the moon, the planets, and the stars. 6 He removed from the Temple the symbol of the goddess Asherah, took it out of the city to Kidron Valley, burned it, pounded its ashes to dust, and scattered it over the public burying ground. 7 He destroyed the living quarters in the Temple occupied by the temple prostitutes. (It was there that women wove robes used in the worship of Asherah.) 8 He brought to Jerusalem the priests who were in the cities of Judah, and throughout the whole country he desecrated the altars where they had offered sacrifices. He also tore down the altars dedicated to the goat demons near the gate built by Joshua, the city governor, which was to the left of the main gate as one enters the city. 9 Those priests were not allowed to serve in the Temple, but they could eat the unleavened bread provided for their fellow priests.
10 King Josiah also desecrated Topheth, the pagan place of worship in Hinnom Valley, so that no one could sacrifice his son or daughter as a burnt offering to the god Molech. 11 He also removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the worship of the sun, and he burned the chariots used in this worship. (These were kept in the temple courtyard, near the gate and not far from the living quarters of Nathan Melech, a high official.) 12 The altars which the kings of Judah had built on the palace roof above King Ahaz' quarters, King Josiah tore down, along with the altars put up by King Manasseh in the two courtyards of the Temple; he smashed the altars to bits and threw them into Kidron Valley. 13 Josiah desecrated the altars that King Solomon had built east of Jerusalem, south of the Mount of Olives, for the worship of disgusting idols—Astarte the goddess of Sidon, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Molech the god of Ammon. 14 King Josiah broke the stone pillars to pieces, cut down the symbols of the goddess Asherah, and the ground where they had stood he covered with human bones.
15 Josiah also tore down the place of worship in Bethel, which had been built by King Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into sin. Josiah pulled down the altar, broke its stones into pieces, and pounded them to dust; he also burned the image of Asherah. 16 Then Josiah looked around and saw some tombs there on the hill; he had the bones taken out of them and burned on the altar. In this way he desecrated the altar, doing what the prophet had predicted long before during the festival as King Jeroboam was standing by the altar. King Josiah looked around and saw the tomb of the prophet who had made this prediction. 17 “Whose tomb is that?” he asked.
The people of Bethel answered, “It is the tomb of the prophet who came from Judah and predicted these things that you have done to this altar.”
18 “Leave it as it is,” Josiah ordered. “His bones are not to be moved.”
So his bones were not moved, neither were those of the prophet who had come from Samaria.
19 In every city of Israel King Josiah tore down all the pagan places of worship which had been built by the kings of Israel, who thereby aroused the Lord's anger. He did to all those altars what he had done in Bethel. 20 He killed all the pagan priests on the altars where they served, and he burned human bones on every altar. Then he returned to Jerusalem.
Josiah Celebrates the Passover
(2 Chronicles 35.1-19)21 King Josiah ordered the people to celebrate the Passover in honor of the Lord their God, as written in the book of the covenant. 22 No Passover like this one had ever been celebrated by any of the kings of Israel or of Judah, since the time when judges ruled the nation. 23 Now at last, in the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah, the Passover was celebrated in Jerusalem.
Other Changes Made by Josiah
24 In order to enforce the laws written in the book that the High Priest Hilkiah had found in the Temple, King Josiah removed from Jerusalem and the rest of Judah all the mediums and fortunetellers, and all the household gods, idols, and all other pagan objects of worship. 25 There had never been a king like him before, who served the Lord with all his heart, mind, and strength, obeying all the Law of Moses; nor has there been a king like him since.
26 But the Lord's fierce anger had been aroused against Judah by what King Manasseh had done, and even now it did not die down. 27 The Lord said, “I will do to Judah what I have done to Israel: I will banish the people of Judah from my sight, and I will reject Jerusalem, the city I chose, and the Temple, the place I said was where I should be worshiped.”
The End of Josiah's Reign
(2 Chronicles 35.20—36.1)28 Everything else that King Josiah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah. 29 While Josiah was king, King Neco of Egypt led an army to the Euphrates River to help the emperor of Assyria. King Josiah tried to stop the Egyptian army at Megiddo and was killed in battle. 30 His officials placed his body in a chariot and took it back to Jerusalem, where he was buried in the royal tombs.
The people of Judah chose Josiah's son Joahaz and anointed him king.
King Joahaz of Judah
(2 Chronicles 36.2-4)31 Joahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king of Judah, and he ruled in Jerusalem for three months. His mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah from the city of Libnah. 32 Following the example of his ancestors, he sinned against the Lord. 33 His reign ended when King Neco of Egypt took him prisoner in Riblah, in the land of Hamath, and made Judah pay 7,500 pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold as tribute. 34 King Neco made Josiah's son Eliakim king of Judah as successor to Josiah, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. Joahaz was taken to Egypt by King Neco, and there he died.
King Jehoiakim of Judah
(2 Chronicles 36.5-8)35 King Jehoiakim collected a tax from the people in proportion to their wealth, in order to raise the amount needed to pay the tribute demanded by the king of Egypt.
36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king of Judah, and he ruled in Jerusalem for eleven years. His mother was Zebidah, the daughter of Pedaiah from the town of Rumah. 37 Following the example of his ancestors, Jehoiakim sinned against the Lord.
Mansa Yosiya ye jalambatoo bo
(2 Taarika 34:3-72 29-33)1 Bituŋ Mansa Yosiya ye Yahuuda bankoo alifaalu niŋ Yerusalaamu saatewo alifaalu bee kumandi ka ì bendi a yaa. 2 Bituŋ a taata Yaawe* Batudulaa Buŋo* to, a niŋ Yahuuda moolu niŋ Yerusalaamu saatee moolu, ka taa fo piriisoolu* niŋ annabiyomoolu, moo maŋ bo moo to. A ye Kambeŋ Kitaaboo* bee karaŋ ì ye, meŋ jeta Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo kono, aduŋ ì tarata i lamoyi kaŋ a la.
3 Bituŋ mansa loota a la dulaa to samasiŋo daala. A ye kambeŋo kutayandi kuuke Yaawe ñaatiliŋo la, ka bula Yaawe nooma, ka a la yaamaroolu, a la luwaalu, aniŋ a la kumoolu muta a niyo niŋ a sondomoo bee la, ka baara kambeŋo kumakaŋo la, ko a be safeeriŋ ñiŋ kitaaboo kono ñaameŋ. Bituŋ moolu fanaa bee ye laahidoo taa ka kambeŋo ñiŋ muta.
4 Wo le to mansa ye piriisi kuntiyo Hilikiya yaamari, aniŋ a noomalanka piriisoolu, ka taa Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo dundaŋ daa kantalaalu, ka jooraŋolu bee bondi Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo kono, mennu dadaata Baali* jalaŋo ye, Asera* jalaŋo ye, aniŋ saŋo santo malafeŋolu ye. A ye ì jani Yerusalaamu saatewo banta la, Kidironi Wulumbaŋo kono. Bituŋ a ye ì seebuutoo taa, a ye a samba Beteli. 5 A ye piriisoolu bee le bayi, Yahuuda mansoolu ye mennu tomboŋ ka cuuraayoo siisindi batudulaa tintiŋolu* to, Yahuuda saatewolu kono, aniŋ Yerusalaamu dandaŋo la. Wolu le keta moolu ti mennu ka cuuraayoo siisindi Baali jalaŋo ye, ka taa tiloo niŋ karoo, looloolu, aniŋ feŋolu bee mennu ka mala saŋo bala. 6 A ye Asera jalaŋ dokoo bondi Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo kono, a ye a samba Kidironi Wulumbaŋo kono, Yerusalaamu saatewo banta la. A ye a jani le ka a tuu jee, bituŋ a ye a seebuutoo taa, a ye a yuruyuru saatee kaburoo to. 7 A ye laañooyaa tulunnaa kewolu fanaa la sabatidulaa buŋolu boyi, mennu be Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo daala. Musoolu ka Asera jalaŋ duŋ feŋolu soo wo dulaa le to.
8 Mansa ye piriisi jalambatulaalu bee le samba naŋ ka bo Yahuuda saatewolu to. A ye batudulaa tintiŋolu tiñaa, piriisoolu ka cuuraayoo siisindi daamennu to, ka bo Keba saatewo to ka taa fo Beeriseba. A ye batudulaa tintiŋolu tiñaa le mennu be Yosuwa la dundaŋ daa daala, saatewo kumandaŋo. Wo dundaŋ daa be saatewo dundaŋ daa* baa ye maraa karoo le la, niŋ i be duŋ na saatewo kono. 9 Sila maŋ dii wo piriisoolu la ka dookuwo ke Yaawe la sadaajanidulaa* to, Yerusalaamu kono. Bari siloo diita ì la le ka mbuuru leweñintaŋo domo, ì niŋ ì piriisiñoolu. 10 A ye Tofeti sadaabodulaa* tiñaa Hinnomu Wulumbaŋo kono le, ñiŋ kamma moo kana a dinkee waraŋ a dimmusu jani dimbaa kono, ka a ke sadaa ti Moleki ye. 11 A ye suwoolu fanaa bondi le Yahuuda mansoolu ye mennu kerekere tiloo batoo ye. Ì tarata nuŋ Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo dundaŋ daa bala le, aduŋ ì sutiyaata Natani-Meleki sabatidulaa fanaa la le, meŋ mu mansakundaa alifaa ti. A ye sareetoolu fanaa jani le mennu kerekereta tiloo batoo ye.
12 Mansa Yosiya ye sadaabodulaalu tiñaa le, Yahuuda mansoolu ye mennu loo Mansa Ahasi la buŋ santonkoo santo. A ye sadaabodulaalu fanaa tiñaa le, Mansa Manase ye mennu loo Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo luu fuloo kono. A ye ì teyi le, aduŋ a ye ì teleŋ meseŋolu fayi Kidironi Wulumbaŋo le kono. 13 A ye batudulaa tintiŋolu tiñaa le, Mansa Sulemani ye mennu loo Yerusalaamu ye tilibo karoo la, Junube Konkoo ye bulubaa karoo la, ka jalaŋ ñewundiŋolu batu jee. Wo jalaŋolu le mu Asitoreti* ti, Sidoninkoolu la jalaŋo, Kemosi, Mowabinkoolu la jalaŋ ñewundiŋo, aniŋ Moleki, Ammoninkoolu la jalaŋ jawu baa. 14 A ye jalaŋ bere samasiŋolu teyi le, aduŋ a ye Asera jalaŋ dokoolu fanaa boyi le. Bituŋ a naata moo kuloolu janjaŋ wo dulaalu to ka jee tiñaa.
15 Mansa ye sadaabodulaa fanaa tiñaa le, meŋ be Beteli. Nebati dinkewo Yerobowamu, meŋ ye Banisirayilankoolu dundi junube kewo to, le ye wo batudulaa tintiŋo loo. A ye a boyi le ka a jani fo a keta munkoo ti, aduŋ a ye Asera jalaŋo fanaa jani le. 16 Kabiriŋ mansa yelemata a ye juubeeroo ke, a ye kaburoolu je konkoo kaŋ. A ye moolu bula ka moo kuloolu bondi naŋ kaburoolu kono. Bituŋ a ye ì jani sadaabodulaa ñiŋ kaŋ, ka jee tiñaa, aduŋ Yaawe la kumoo timmata. Waati jaŋ koomanto, Alla la moo ye a kuwo bankee le. Wo le mu wo kewo ti, meŋ ye ñiŋ kuwolu fo, wo waatoo Mansa Yerobowamu tarata looriŋ nuŋ sadaabodulaa daala ka juuraloo ke. Wo le to Mansa Yosiya ye a dandaŋo la juubee, a ye Alla la moo ñiŋ na kaburoo je, meŋ ye ñiŋ kuwolu bankee janniŋ ì ka sii. 17 Bituŋ mansa kumata ko, “Jumaa le la kaburoo mu ñiŋ ti?” Jee saatee moolu ko a ye ko, “Alla la moo ñiŋ na kaburoo le mu, meŋ naata nuŋ ka bo naŋ Yahuuda, ka ñiŋ kuwolu bee bankee i ye mennu ke sadaabodulaa ñiŋ na teŋ.” 18 Bituŋ a ko ì ye ko, “Ali a tu tenkundiŋ. Moo kana a kuloolu maa.” Bituŋ ì ye a kuloolu tu ì noo to, aniŋ annabiyomoo fanaa kuloolu, meŋ bota Samariya.
19 Batudulaa tintiŋolu mennu bee be Samariya saatewolu to, Banisirayila mansoolu ye mennu loo ka Alla kamfandi, Mansa Yosiya ye ì tiñaa le. A ye meŋ ke Beteli sadaabodulaa la, a ye wo ñoŋo le ke ì la. 20 A ye jalaŋ batudulaalu piriisoolu bee le faa sadaabodulaalu kaŋ jee, aduŋ a ye moo kuloolu jani ì kaŋ ne. Bituŋ a naata seyi Yerusalaamu.
Yosiya ye Yaawe Tambi Tumoo Juuraloo ke
(2 Taarika 35:1-19)21 Mansa Yosiya ye moolu bee yaamari, a ko ì ye Yaawe Tambi Tumoo Juuraloo* ke ka Yaawe batu, ì la Alla, ko a be safeeriŋ Kambeŋ Kitaaboo kono ñaameŋ. 22 Wo juuraloo nene maŋ juura teŋ kabiriŋ kiitindirilaalu la waatoo la, mennu keta nuŋ Banisirayilankoolu la ñaatonkoolu ti, sako a ñoŋ si ke Banisirayila niŋ Yahuuda mansoolu la waatoo bee kono. 23 Mansa Yosiya la mansayaa sanji taŋ niŋ seyinjaŋo kono le mu, Yaawe Tambi Tumoo Juuraloo keta Yerusalaamu kono, ka Yaawe batu. 24 Wo bee koolaa, Mansa Yosiya ye moolu bee kasaara le, mennu niŋ furewolu ka diyaamu, ka taa batuutaalu, bunkono jalaŋolu, jalaŋ doolu, aniŋ wo feŋ kondiŋ siifaalu meŋ-wo-meŋ be Yahuuda bankoo kaŋ, aniŋ Yerusalaamu saatewo kono. A ye ñiŋ ke le ka luwaa la kuwolu taamandi, meŋ safeeta kitaaboo kono Piriisi Hilikiya ye meŋ je Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo kono. 25 A ñoŋ mansa nene maŋ soto, kaatu ate ye a faŋo muumewo bee le seyi Yaawe ma, a ye a la kuwo muta a niyo la, komeŋ Musa la Luwaa* ye meŋ yaamari. Aduŋ fanaa ate la waatoo boriŋo a la, a ñoŋ maŋ soto.
26 Bari wo ñaa-wo-ñaa Yaawe tuta kamfaariŋ baake Yahuuda moolu kamma le, kaatu Mansa Manase ye kuu jawu jamaa le ke ka Yaawe kamfandi. Wo le ye a tinna a maŋ a la kamfaa fijoo bo Yahuuda moolu kaŋ. 27 Aduŋ Yaawe ye ñiŋ ne fo ko, a be Yahuuda moolu bayi la le ka bo a ñaatiliŋo la, komeŋ a ye Banisirayilankoolu bayi ñaameŋ. A be a koo dii la Yerusalaamu saatewo la le, a ye meŋ tomboŋ a faŋo ye, aniŋ Yaawe Batudulaa Buŋo, a ko a be a too ke la daameŋ to, ka ke a batudulaa ti.
Yosiya la mansayaa bandulaa
(2 Taarika 35:20—36:1)28 Mansa Yosiya la mansayaa kuu toomaalu, aniŋ a ye dookuwolu mennu ke, wolu bee safeeta Yahuuda Mansoolu la Taarika Kitaaboo le kono.
29 Yosiya la mansayaa waatoo kono Misira mansa Firawoona Neko naata le ka keloo ke Asiriya mansa ye Yufurati Boloŋo to. Bituŋ Mansa Yosiya wulita ka taa a benduŋ keloo la, bari Firawoona Neko niŋ a benta le, a ye a faa Mekido. 30 A la dookuulaalu ye a furewo samba keleraŋ sareetoo* la ka bo Mekido, ì ye a naati Yerusalaamu. Bituŋ ì ye a sutura a faŋo la kaburoo to.
Bituŋ Yahuuda bankoo moolu naata Yosiya dinkewo Yehohasi tomboŋ, ì ye tuloo boŋ a kuŋo to, ka a ke mansa ti a faamaa noo to.
Yahuuda mansa Yehohasi
(2 Taarika 36:2-4)31 Yehohasi siyo be sanji muwaŋ niŋ saba le kabiriŋ a be mansayaa dati la, aduŋ a ye kari saba le ke mansayaa la Yerusalaamu kono. A baamaa too mu Hamutali le ti, Yeremiya dimmusoo, meŋ bota Libuna saatewo to. 32 Yehohasi baarata kuu jawoo le la Yaawe ñaa koto, komeŋ a mumuñolu ye a ke ñaameŋ. 33 Firawoona Neko ye a siti joloo la Ribula saatewo to le, Hamati bankoo kaŋ, ka a bondi mansayaa to Yerusalaamu saatewo kono. Bituŋ a ye naamoo laa Yahuuda bankoo moolu kaŋ ka kodiforoo kilo wuli saba niŋ keme naani joo, aniŋ sanoo kilo taŋ saba niŋ naani. 34 Firawoona Neko ye Eliyakimu ke a faamaa Yosiya noo to mansa ti, aduŋ a ye a too faliŋ ka a ke Yehoyakimu ti. A naata Yehohasi samba Misira, bituŋ Yehohasi faata jee.
Yahuuda mansa Yehoyakimu
(2 Taarika 36:5-8)35 Yehoyakimu ye Firawoona Neko joo kodiforoo niŋ sanoo la le, a ye meŋ kaniŋ. A ye kodiforoo niŋ sanoo taa bankoo moolu le bulu naamoo ti ka a joo, aduŋ a ye a kaañandi moo-wo-moo la sotoo daŋo le fee.
36 Yehoyakimu siyo be sanji muwaŋ niŋ luulu le kabiriŋ a be mansayaa dati la, aduŋ a ye sanji taŋ niŋ kiliŋ ne ke mansayaa la Yerusalaamu kono. A baamaa too mu Sebida le ti, meŋ faamaa mu Pedaya ti, meŋ bota Ruma saatewo to. 37 Yehoyakimu baarata kuu jawoo le la Yaawe ñaa koto, komeŋ a mumuñolu ye a ke ñaameŋ.
