And saidunto the Levitesthattaught all Israel, whichwereholyunto the LORD, Put the holy ark in the housewhichSolomon the son of Davidking of Israel did build; it shall not be a burdenuponyourshoulders: serve now the LORDyour God, and his peopleIsrael,
And prepareyourselves by the houses of yourfathers, afteryourcourses, according to the writing of Davidking of Israel, and according to the writing of Solomon his son.
And stand in the holyplaceaccording to the divisions of the families of the fathers of yourbrethren the people, and after the division of the families of the Levites.
And Josiahgave to the people, of the flock, lambs and kids, all for the passoverofferings, for all thatwerepresent, to the number of thirtythousand, and threethousandbullocks: thesewere of the king’ssubstance.
And his princesgavewillinglyunto the people, to the priests, and to the Levites: Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gaveunto the priests for the passoverofferings two thousand and six hundredsmallcattle, and threehundredoxen.
Conaniahalso, and Shemaiah and Nethaneel, his brethren, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gaveunto the Levites for passoverofferingsfivethousandsmallcattle, and fivehundredoxen.
And theyremoved the burntofferings, thattheymightgiveaccording to the divisions of the families of the people, to offerunto the LORD, as it is written in the book of Moses. And so did theywith the oxen.
And theyroasted the passoverwithfireaccording to the ordinance: but the otherholyofferings sod they in pots, and in caldrons, and in pans, and dividedthemspeedilyamong all the people.
And afterwardtheymadeready for themselves, and for the priests: because the priests the sons of Aaronwerebusied in offering of burntofferings and the fat untilnight; therefore the Levitesprepared for themselves, and for the priests the sons of Aaron.
And the singers the sons of Asaphwere in theirplace, according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the king’sseer; and the porterswaited at everygate; theymight not departfromtheirservice; for theirbrethren the Levitesprepared for them.
So all the service of the LORD was prepared the same day, to keep the passover, and to offerburntofferingsupon the altar of the LORD, according to the commandment of kingJosiah.
And there was no passoverlike to thatkept in Israelfrom the days of Samuel the prophet; neither did all the kings of Israelkeepsuch a passover as Josiahkept, and the priests, and the Levites, and all Judah and Israelthatwerepresent, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
But he sentambassadors to him, saying, Whathave I to do withthee, thouking of Judah? I come not againsttheethis day, but against the housewherewith I have war: for God commanded me to makehaste: forbeartheefrommeddlingwith God, who is with me, that he destroythee not.
NeverthelessJosiahwould not turn his facefrom him, but disguisedhimself, that he mightfightwith him, and hearkened not unto the words of Nechofrom the mouth of God, and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.
His servantsthereforetook him out of thatchariot, and put him in the secondchariotthat he had; and theybrought him to Jerusalem, and he died, and was buried in one of the sepulchres of his fathers. And all Judah and Jerusalemmourned for Josiah.
And Jeremiahlamented for Josiah: and all the singing men and the singingwomenspake of Josiah in theirlamentations to this day, and madethem an ordinance in Israel: and, behold, they are written in the lamentations.