2 Chronicles
Chapter 35
Josiah then celebrated a Passover in honor of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they killed the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the first month.
He appointed certain functions to the priests. He let them discharge the duties of the Lord’s house.
Then he said to the Levites, instructing all Israel and consecrating to the Lord: “The holy Ark has been put in the house built by Solomon, son of David, king of Israel, and it is no longer a burden for your shoulders. So you shall serve the Lord your God and Israel your people this way.
Stand in the holy place by families and orders, according to the written decree of David, king of Israel, and his son Solomon;
and let some be available to help each family of the people of Israel; for the Levites are to have a portion in each family.
Kill the animals for the festival, sanctify yourselves, and be at your brothers’ disposal in acting according to the word of the Lord, which was spoken through Moses.”
Josiah then provided for the use of the people, lambs, and kids from the flocks to thirty thousand, all as Passover offerings for all who were present, and three thousand bulls as well; all these animals came from the king’s possessions.
His officials, for their part, made provision for what the people, the priests, and the Levites would use. The senior officials of the house of God, Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, also gave the priests two thousand six hundred lambs and kids and three hundred bulls as Passover victims.
The heads of the Levites, Conaniah, Shemaiah, and his brothers Nathanel, Hashabiah, Jeiel, and Jozabad, provided five thousand lambs and kids and five hundred bulls as Passover victims for the Levites.
When everything for the Passover had been prepared, the priests took their posts, and the Levites also, in their orders, as commanded by the king.
They killed the lambs and goats, and while the priests sprinkled the blood they received, the Levites cut up the victims.
They put aside the animals for the burnt offering and distributed it to the lay people’s family groupings, giving each offering to the Lord, as is written in the Book of Moses. They did the same with the bulls.
They roasted the Passover, as ordained, and boiled the sacred foods in pots, dishes, and pans, carrying them speedily to the people.
Afterward, they prepared the Passover for themselves and the priests. Because the priests, the sons of Aaron, had been busy till nightfall offering the burnt offering and the fatty parts, the Levites prepared the Passover for themselves and the priests, Aaron’s sons.
The musicians, the sons of Asaph, were at their places by the ordinances of David; neither Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, the king’s prophet, nor the keepers of each gate had to leave their duties since their brothers, the Levites, made all the preparations for them.
So the whole service of the Lord was prepared that day to celebrate the Passover and to offer burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord, by the ordinances of King Josiah.
The present Israelites celebrated the Passover and, for seven days, the feast of Unleavened Bread.
No Passover like this one had ever been celebrated in Israel since the days of the prophet Samuel. No king of Israel had ever celebrated a Passover like the one celebrated by Josiah with the priests, the Levites, all of Judah and Israel who were present, and the people of Jerusalem.
This Passover was celebrated in the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah.
After all this, when Josiah had already repaired the house, Neco, king of Egypt, came up to fight at Carchemish on the Euphrates, and Josiah marched out to stop him.
Neco sent him messengers to say: “There is no quarrel between me and you, king of Judah. I have not come today to attack you but to fight my enemies, and God has told me to hurry. Do not oppose God who is with me, lest he destroy you.”
But Josiah continued challenging him, for he was determined to fight him and would not listen to God’s words through Neco. So he went out to fight in the plain of Megiddo.
Egyptian arrows struck King Josiah, and the king said to his followers: “Take me away. I am badly wounded.”
His servants lifted him out of his chariot, transferred him to another one, and took him back to Jerusalem, where he died. He was buried in the tombs of his ancestors. All Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.
Jeremiah composed a lament for Josiah, which all the women singers use when speaking of Josiah in their laments to this day. This has become a custom in Israel. The song is found in the collection of laments.
The rest of Josiah’s history, including all his good deeds according to the law,
and his acts from the first to the last, are recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.
Commentaries
The Kings of Judah Until the Exile.
The final section of the Chronicler’s work focuses on the history of the kingdom of Judah, covering from Solomon to the exile, with little mention of the Northern Kingdom. For the Chronicler, the kingdom of Judah represents the entire nation of Israel. The primary standard for judging each king is their loyalty to God. Four notable figures stand out as models of this loyalty: Asa, Jehoshaphat, Josiah, and especially Hezekiah. The prophets are also depicted alongside the kings, delivering messages that include warnings and sincere calls to stay loyal to the Lord. Ultimately, the Chronicler encourages the post-exilic community to seek God and remain faithful to the One who has remained true to his people despite their difficulties.
describes Josiah of Judah.
The account is based on 2 Kings 22:1-23:30. The Chronicler depicts Josiah’s reform differently from the Book of Kings. He begins with a radical act of removing all forms of idolatry, even beyond the borders of Judah. Next, he describes the discovery of the Book of the Law (34:14-21), which triggers a new religious reform (33). The account of Josiah’s Passover is more detailed than the one in 2 Kings 23:21-23, emphasizing the role of the Levites rather than the priests (35:3-6). 35:7-9 mentions that the family Passover has become a national holiday, featuring lamb sacrifices and communal offerings, encouraging participation (35:10-17). The Chronicler interprets Josiah’s death as a sign of divine disapproval of a personal sin. Interestingly, this sin involves ignoring God’s Word spoken by Pharaoh Necho (35:22). The text does not specify which Lamentations are referenced in 35:25.