Read the Bible

¹ And Josiah performed a Passover in Jerusalem to Jehovah, and they killed the passover offering on the fourteenth of the first month.² And he made the priests stand over their charges, and made them strong for the service of the house of Jehovah,³ and said to the Levites who were teaching all Israel, who were sanctified to Jehovah, Put the holy ark in the house that Solomon the son of David the king of Israel built; it shall not be a burden on your shoulders. Now serve Jehovahyour God, and His people Israel,⁴ and prepare by the house of your fathers, according to your courses, by the writing of David the king of Israel, and by the writing of his son Solomon,⁵ and stand in the place of holiness, by the divisions of the house of the fathers of your brothers, the sons of the people, and the portion of the house of the father of the Levites;⁶ and kill the passover offering and sanctify yourselves, and prepare for your brothers, to do according to the Word of Jehovah, by the hand of Moses.⁷ And Josiah lifted up to the sons of the people a flock of lambs and young goats, all for passover offerings, for everyone who was found, to the number of thirty thousand, and three thousand oxen; these were from the king's substance.⁸ And his leaders lifted up for a freewill offering to the people, to the priests, and to the Levites: Hilkiah, and Zechariah, and Jehiel, rulers in the house of God, gave to the priest two thousand and six hundred for passover offerings, andthree hundred oxen.⁹ And Conaniah, and Shemaiah, and Nethaneel, his brothers; and Hashabiah, and Jeiel, and Jozabad, chiefs of the Levites, lifted up to the Levites five thousand for passover offerings, and five hundred oxen.¹⁰ And the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites in their courses, according to the command of the king.¹¹ And they slaughtered the passover offering and the priests sprinkled out of their hand, and the Levites were stripping;¹² and they removed the burnt offering, to distribute them by the divisions of the house of the fathers of the sons of the people, to offer to Jehovah, as it is written in the book of Moses, and so to the oxen.¹³ And they cooked the passover with fire, according to the ordinance; and they cooked the holy things in pots, and in kettles, and in pans, and carried to all the sons of the people.¹⁴ And afterward they prepared for themselves, and for the priests; for the priests, the sons of Aaron, were offering up the burnt offering and the fat until nightfall; and the Levites prepared for themselves and for the priests; the sons ofAaron.¹⁵ And the singers, the sons of Asaph, were in their place, according to David's command, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the seer of the king; and the gatekeepers were at each gate;it was not for them to depart from theirservice, for their brothers the Levites prepared for them.¹⁶ And all the service of Jehovah was prepared on that day, to perform the Passover, and to offer burnt offerings on the altar of Jehovah, according to the command of King Josiah.¹⁷ And the sons of Israel who were found performed the Passover at that time, and the Feast of Unleavened Bread , seven days.¹⁸ And there had not been a Passover performed like it in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet; yea, none of the kings of Israel performed such a Passover as Josiah performed, and the priests, and the Levites and all Judah and Israel whowere found, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.¹⁹ In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah, this Passover was performed.

²⁰ After all this, when Josiah had prepared the house, Necho the king of Egypt came up to fight against Carchemish by the Euphrates; and Josiah went out to meet him.²¹ And he sent messengers to him, saying, What do I have to do with you, O king of Judah? I am not coming against you today, but toward the house with which I have war; and Godsaid for me to hasten; stop yourself fromopposing God, who is with me, and He shall not destroy you.²² Josiah would not turn his face from him, but disguised himself to fight against him, and did not listen to the words of Necho from the mouth of God; and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.²³ And the archers shot at King Josiah. And the king said to his servants, Carry me out, for I am severely wounded.²⁴ And his servants carried him out from the chariot, and caused him to ride in a second chariot of his, and brought him to Jerusalem. And he died and was buried in the graves of his fathers. And all Judah and Jerusalem were mourning for Josiah.²⁵ And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah; and all the singers and the songstresses speak in their lamentations of Josiah to this day, and gave them as a statute in Israel; and behold, they are written in the Lamentations.²⁶ And the rest of the acts of Josiah, and his godly deeds, are according as it is written in the Law of Jehovah.²⁷ And his acts, the first and the last, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.