2 Chronicles 34:8–28

JOSIAH’S REPAIR OF THE TEMPLE

⁸In the eighteenth year of his reign,^a in order to cleanse the land and the temple, Josiah sent Shaphan son of Azaliah, along with Maaseiah the governor^b of the city and the court historian Joah son of Joahaz, to repair the temple of the Lord his God.

⁹So they went to the high priest Hilkiah^c and gave him the silver brought into God’s temple. The Levites and the doorkeepers had collected it from Manasseh, Ephraim,^d and from the entire remnant of Israel, and from all Judah, Benjamin, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ¹⁰They gave it to those doing the work—those who oversaw the Lord’s temple. They gave it to the workmen who were working in the Lord’s temple, to repair and restore the temple; ¹¹they gave it to the carpenters and builders and also used it to buy quarried stone and timbers—for joining and making beams—for the buildings that Judah’s kings had destroyed.

¹²The men were doing the work with integrity. Their overseers were Jahath and Obadiah, Levites from the Merarites, and Zechariah and Meshullam from the Kohathites as supervisors. The Levites were all skilled with musical instruments.^{e 13}They were also over the porters and were supervising all those doing the work task by task. Some of the Levites were secretaries, officers, and gatekeepers.

THE RECOVERY OF THE BOOK OF THE LAW

¹⁴When they brought out the silver that had been deposited in the Lord’s temple, the priest Hilkiah found the book of the law of the Lord written by the hand of Moses.^{f 15}Consequently,^g Hilkiah told the court secretary Shaphan, “I have found the book of the law in the Lord’s temple,” and he gave the book to Shaphan.

¹⁶Shaphan took the book to the king, and also reported, “Your servants are doing all that was placed in their hands. ¹⁷They have emptied out the silver that was found in the Lord’s temple and have given it to the overseers and to those doing the work.” ¹⁸Then the court secretary Shaphan told the king, “The priest Hilkiah gave me a book,” and Shaphan read from it in the presence of the king.^h

¹⁹When the king heard the words of the law, he tore his clothes.^{i 20}Then he commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Abdon son of Micah, the court secretary Shaphan, and the king’s servant Asaiah, ²¹“Go and inquire of the Lord for me and for those remaining in Israel and Judah, concerning the words of the book that was found. For great is the Lord’s wrath that is poured out on us^j because our ancestors have not kept the word of the Lord in order to do everything written in this book.”

HULDAH’S PROPHECY OF JUDGMENT

²²So Hilkiah and those the king had designated^A went to the prophetess Huldah, the wife of Shallum son of Tokhath, son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem in the Second District. They spoke with her about this.

²³She said to them, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: Say to the man who sent you to me, ²⁴‘This is what the Lord says: I am about to bring disaster on this place and on its inhabitants,^k fulfilling^B all the curses written in the book that they read in the presence of the king of Judah,^{l 25}because they have abandoned me^m and burned incense to other gods so as to anger me with all the works of their hands. My wrath will be poured out on this place, and it will not be quenched.’ ²⁶Say this to the king of Judah who sent you to inquire of the Lord: ‘This is what the Lord God of Israel says: As for the words that you heard, ²⁷becauseⁿ your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this place and against its inhabitants, and because you humbled yourself before me, and you tore your clothes and wept before me, I myself have heard’—this is the Lord’s declaration. ²⁸‘I will indeed gather you to your ancestors, and you will be gathered to your grave in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster that I am bringing on this place and on its inhabitants.’ ”^o

Then they reported to the king.