Hilkiah

3In the eighteenth year that Josiah was king, he sent a man named Shaphan to the temple. He was the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam. The king told him:

And it came to pass in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house of the LORD, saying,

NoteA scribe was a man who could read and write. Most people could not do either. Scribes wrote letters and kept records for the king. The temple was the special building in Jerusalem where people worshiped God.

4"Go to Hilkiah, the high priest, the leader of all the priests. Ask him to count the money brought into the LORD's temple. The men who guard the doors have collected it from the people."

Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, that he may sum the silver which is brought into the house of the LORD, which the keepers of the door have gathered of the people:

NoteThe King James Bible says "silver" here. There were no coins yet. People paid with pieces of silver, weighed on a scale. Families brought silver to the temple as a gift to God.

5"Then give the money to the men in charge of the work on the temple. They will pay the workers who are fixing the broken parts of the building."

And let them deliver it into the hand of the doers of the work, that have the oversight of the house of the LORD: and let them give it to the doers of the work which is in the house of the LORD, to repair the breaches of the house,

6"The money is for the carpenters, the builders, and the stone workers. It also buys wood and cut stone to fix the temple."

Unto carpenters, and builders, and masons, and to buy timber and hewn stone to repair the house.

NoteThe temple had been standing for hundreds of years. Old buildings crack and crumble. Workers needed wood and cut stone to mend it.

7"No one needs to check how the workers spend the money. They are honest men."

Howbeit there was no reckoning made with them of the money that was delivered into their hand, because they dealt faithfully.

8Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, "I have found the Book of the Law in the temple!" He gave the book to Shaphan, and Shaphan read it.

And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.

NoteThe Book of the Law held God's rules for his people. God had given them long ago, through a leader named Moses. It was not a book like yours. It was a scroll, a long rolled-up sheet you unroll to read. It had been put away and forgotten for years.

9Shaphan the scribe went back to the king with a report. He said, "Your servants have taken the money that was in the temple. We gave it to the men in charge of the work."

And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and brought the king word again, and said, Thy servants have gathered the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of them that do the work, that have the oversight of the house of the LORD.

10Then Shaphan told the king something else. He said, "Hilkiah the priest gave me a book." And Shaphan read the book out loud to the king.

And Shaphan the scribe shewed the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath delivered me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king.

NoteShaphan read the book out loud because the king was listening. Almost nobody read quietly to themselves back then. Reading was usually done out loud, for other people to hear.

11The king listened to the words of the Book of the Law. When he heard them, he tore his clothes to show how upset he was.

And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes.

NoteTearing your own clothes was something people did when they were very sad or very sorry. Everyone who saw the ripped clothes knew right away how you felt.

12Then the king gave an order to five men. They were Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Achbor son of Michaiah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asahiah, one of the king's servants. He said:

And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Michaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asahiah a servant of the king’s, saying,

13"Go and ask the LORD what this book means for me, for the people, and for all Judah. The LORD is very angry with us. Our fathers did not obey the words of this book. They did not do what it says we should do."

Go ye, enquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found: for great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us.

Note"Ask the LORD" meant going to a prophet. A prophet was a person who told others what God said. Judah was the name of Josiah's country. "Our fathers" means the people who lived before them, like grandparents and great-grandparents.

14So Hilkiah, Ahikam, Achbor, Shaphan, and Asahiah went to see Huldah. She was married to Shallum, who was the keeper of the clothes. Shallum was the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas. Huldah lived in Jerusalem, in the second part of the city. The men talked with her.

So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with her.

NoteHuldah was a prophetess, a woman who told people what God said. Her husband Shallum had an important job. He looked after the king's robes and special clothes. The King James Bible says Huldah lived "in the college." That is an old word for a part of Jerusalem, the newer second part of the city. Keeper of the wardrobe means the man whose job was to look after the clothes.

15Huldah said to them, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says. Tell the man who sent you to me:"

And she said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me,

16"This is what the LORD says. I am going to bring trouble on this place and on the people here. It will happen just as the book says, the book the king of Judah read."

Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Judah hath read:

NoteThe King James Bible says God will bring "evil" on this place. Here "evil" means trouble and hard times, not naughtiness. Enemies would come and the city would be broken.

17"They have left me. They have burned incense to other gods. All the idols they made with their hands have made me angry. So my anger will burn against this place, and no one will put it out."

Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be kindled against this place, and shall not be quenched.

NoteIncense is a sweet-smelling stuff that people burn, a bit like a scented candle. Burning it was a way of giving a gift to a god. Idols were statues that people made and then prayed to.

18"But the king of Judah sent you to ask the LORD a question. Tell him this. The LORD, the God of Israel, says about the words you heard:"

But to the king of Judah which sent you to enquire of the LORD, thus shall ye say to him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, As touching the words which thou hast heard;

19Your heart was soft, and you bowed low before the LORD. You heard what I said against this place and the people in it. I said they would become a ruin and a curse. You tore your clothes and cried in front of me. So I have heard you, says the LORD.

Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the LORD.

NoteA "tender heart" means a soft heart. It means Josiah listened and was truly sorry. "Desolation and a curse" means empty and ruined. People would say the name of the city when they talked about sad things. To become a curse means people would say your name when they spoke of bad things.

20"I will let you die and join your family who died before you. You will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the trouble I will bring on this place." The men took her answer back to the king.

Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again.

Note"Gathered to your fathers" is a gentle old way of saying someone dies. Families were often buried together in the same cave or tomb. So a person who died went to rest beside his family.

4The king gave an order to Hilkiah, the chief priest. He also spoke to the priests who helped him and to the men who guarded the doors. He told them to carry out of the temple every object made for false gods. These were made for Baal, for Asherah, and for the sun, moon, and stars. He burned them outside the city in the fields of Kidron. Then he had the ashes taken to the town of Bethel.

And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Bethel.

NoteBaal and Asherah were false gods. People in nearby lands worshiped them. Some people in Judah did too. "The host of heaven" means the sun, moon, and stars. Some people worshiped them as gods. Kidron was a valley just outside the city wall. Bethel was a town to the north.

5Josiah got rid of the priests who served false gods. Earlier kings of Judah had picked them. They burned sweet-smelling incense at worship spots on hills. They did this in the towns of Judah and around Jerusalem. Others burned incense to Baal, to the sun, to the moon, and to the stars.

And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.

NoteIncense is a sweet-smelling powder. People burned it as a gift to a god. "High places" were worship spots built on hills. People went there instead of the temple.

6He took the Asherah pole out of the LORD's house. He carried it outside the city to the Kidron valley. There he burned it and ground it into fine dust. Then he threw the dust on the graves of ordinary people.

And he brought out the grove from the house of the LORD, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the children of the people.

NoteAn Asherah pole was a tall wooden pole. It was carved and set up for the goddess Asherah. Throwing the dust on graves made it dirty. After that nobody would want to use it again.

7He tore down the rooms next to the LORD's house where men sold their bodies as part of false worship. Women had woven cloth there for the goddess Asherah.

And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the grove.

8Josiah brought all the priests in from the towns of Judah. He ruined the hilltop worship spots where those priests had burned incense. He did this everywhere, from the town of Geba to the town of Beersheba. He also tore down the altars by the gate of Joshua, the ruler of the city. That gate stood at the left side of the city entrance.

And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba, and brake down the high places of the gates that were in the entering in of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on a man’s left hand at the gate of the city.

NoteGeba was far north in Judah. Beersheba was far south. Saying both means he did this everywhere in the land. To ruin a place here means to make it dirty and unfit. Then no one would worship there anymore.

9Those hilltop priests were not allowed to serve at the LORD's altar in Jerusalem. But they did eat flat bread made without yeast, along with the other priests.

Nevertheless the priests of the high places came not up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they did eat of the unleavened bread among their brethren.

NoteFlat bread without yeast was part of the priests' food. Priests were given a share of the food people brought to God.

10He also ruined the place called Topheth, in the valley of Ben-hinnom. Now no one could burn his son or daughter there as a gift to the god Molech.

And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the children of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech.

NoteMolech was a false god. Some people burned their own children as gifts to him. Topheth was the spot where they did this. It was in a valley just outside Jerusalem.

11Kings of Judah had set apart horses to honor the sun. They stood near the entrance to the LORD's house, by the room of an official named Nathan-melech. Josiah took the horses away. He burned up the chariots that were used to honor the sun.

And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the LORD, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire.

NoteThe horses were gifts given to honor the sun as a god. A chariot is a small cart pulled by horses.

12Kings of Judah had built altars on the roof by the upper room of Ahaz. Manasseh had built altars in the two courtyards of the LORD's house. King Josiah pulled all of them down. He smashed them and threw the pieces into the Kidron valley.

And the altars that were on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD, did the king beat down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron.

NoteAhaz and Manasseh were kings of Judah long before Josiah. Houses then had flat roofs. People could climb up and worship the stars there.

13There were hilltop worship spots east of Jerusalem, south of the hill called the Mount of Corruption. King Solomon had built them long ago for three false gods. He built one for Ashtoreth, the hated god of the Sidonians. He built one for Chemosh, the hated god of Moab. He built one for Milcom, the hated god of Ammon. King Josiah ruined all of them.

And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, did the king defile.

NoteSolomon was a famous king long before. He built the first temple. The Sidonians, Moabites, and Ammonites lived in lands nearby. Each one had its own god. The Mount of Corruption was a hill east of the city.

14He smashed the stone pillars to pieces. He cut down the Asherah poles. Then he covered those places with human bones.

And he brake in pieces the images, and cut down the groves, and filled their places with the bones of men.

NoteStone pillars were tall standing stones set up for false gods. Dead people's bones made a place unclean by their rules. So no one would worship there again.

8It was now his eighteenth year as king. The land and the temple were clean. Josiah sent three men to fix up the house of the LORD his God. They were Shaphan son of Azaliah, Maaseiah the leader of the city, and Joah son of Joahaz, who kept the records.

Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land, and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah the governor of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz the recorder, to repair the house of the LORD his God.

NoteThe house of the LORD was the temple in Jerusalem. It was a big stone building where people worshiped God.

9They went to Hilkiah the high priest, the chief priest at the temple. They gave him the money people had brought into God's house. The Levites, the men who worked at the temple, had collected it at the doors. It came from the people of Manasseh and Ephraim and everyone left in Israel. It also came from Judah, Benjamin, and Jerusalem.

And when they came to Hilkiah the high priest, they delivered the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites that kept the doors had gathered of the hand of Manasseh and Ephraim, and of all the remnant of Israel, and of all Judah and Benjamin; and they returned to Jerusalem.

NotePeople brought money to the temple as a gift to God. It was kept there until it was needed.

10They handed the money to the men in charge of the temple work. Those men paid the workers who were fixing the house of the LORD.

And they put it in the hand of the workmen that had the oversight of the house of the LORD, and they gave it to the workmen that wrought in the house of the LORD, to repair and amend the house:

11They gave money to the carpenters and builders. It paid for cut stone and for wooden beams. Earlier kings of Judah had let those buildings fall apart.

Even to the artificers and builders gave they it, to buy hewn stone, and timber for couplings, and to floor the houses which the kings of Judah had destroyed.

NoteCut stone means stone shaped flat so it fits in a wall. Beams are long, strong pieces of wood that hold up a roof.

12The men did the work honestly. Two Levites named Jahath and Obadiah watched over them. They came from the family of Merari. Zechariah and Meshullam from the family of Kohath watched over them too. Other Levites who were skilled at playing music helped as well.

And the men did the work faithfully: and the overseers of them were Jahath and Obadiah, the Levites, of the sons of Merari; and Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites, to set it forward; and other of the Levites, all that could skill of instruments of musick.

NoteThe Levites all came from one big family of Israel. Their job was helping at the temple. Merari and Kohath were smaller families inside that family.

13They were in charge of the men who carried heavy loads. They watched over every job that was being done. Some of the Levites were writers, some were officers, and some guarded the gates.

Also they were over the bearers of burdens, and were overseers of all that wrought the work in any manner of service: and of the Levites there were scribes, and officers, and porters.

14The workers were carrying out the money kept in the LORD's house. While they did, Hilkiah the priest found a book. It was the Book of the Law of the LORD, written down by Moses.

And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of the LORD, Hilkiah the priest found a book of the law of the LORD given by Moses.

NoteThe Book of the Law held God's rules for his people. Moses was their leader long, long before Josiah was born. The book had been lost for many years.

15Hilkiah said to Shaphan the scribe, the man who read and wrote for the king, "I have found the Book of the Law in the LORD's house!" Then he handed the book to Shaphan.

And Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shaphan.

16Shaphan carried the book to the king. He also told him, "Your servants are doing everything you gave them to do."

And Shaphan carried the book to the king, and brought the king word back again, saying, All that was committed to thy servants, they do it.

17"They have paid out the money that was found in the LORD's house. They gave it to the men in charge and to the workers."

And they have gathered together the money that was found in the house of the LORD, and have delivered it into the hand of the overseers, and to the hand of the workmen.

18Then Shaphan told the king, "Hilkiah the priest gave me a book." And Shaphan read it out loud to the king.

Then Shaphan the scribe told the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath given me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king.

19When the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his clothes.

And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the law, that he rent his clothes.

NoteTearing your clothes showed everyone that you were very sad. People did this when something terrible happened.

20Then the king gave an order to Hilkiah and to Ahikam son of Shaphan. He also spoke to Abdon son of Micah, to Shaphan the scribe, and to his servant Asaiah.

And the king commanded Hilkiah, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Abdon the son of Micah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah a servant of the king’s, saying,

21He said, "Go and ask the LORD about the words in this book that was found. Ask for me and for everyone still left in Israel and Judah. The LORD is very angry with us. Our fathers did not keep his word or do what this book says."

Go, enquire of the LORD for me, and for them that are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that is found: for great is the wrath of the LORD that is poured out upon us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD, to do after all that is written in this book.

NoteTo ask the LORD, you went to a prophet. A prophet was a person who told others what God said. "Our fathers" means the people who lived before them.

22So Hilkiah and the men the king chose went to see Huldah. She was a prophetess, a woman who told people what God said. Her husband was Shallum son of Tokhath, son of Hasrah, who took care of the robes. Huldah lived in Jerusalem, in the newer part of the city. They told her what the king had said.

And Hilkiah, and they that the king had appointed, went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvath, the son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college:) and they spake to her to that effect.

NoteTaking care of the robes was a real job. He looked after special clothes for the king or the temple. The newer part was one section of the city.

23She answered them, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says. Go and tell the man who sent you:"

And she answered them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell ye the man that sent you to me,

24"This is what the LORD says. I am going to bring trouble on this place and on the people here. Everything bad written in that book will happen. The king of Judah heard those words read out loud."

Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the curses that are written in the book which they have read before the king of Judah:

25"They have left me. They have burned incense to other gods. Everything they made with their hands has made me angry. So my anger will pour out on this place, and no one will stop it."

Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be poured out upon this place, and shall not be quenched.

NoteIncense is sweet-smelling smoke. Burning it was a way of giving a gift to a god.

26"But the king of Judah sent you to ask the LORD. Tell him this from the LORD, the God of Israel, about the words he heard:"

And as for the king of Judah, who sent you to enquire of the LORD, so shall ye say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel concerning the words which thou hast heard;

27"Your heart was soft, and you were sorry in front of God. You heard what I said against this place and its people. You bowed low before me, tore your clothes, and cried. So I have heard you, says the LORD."

Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me; I have even heard thee also, saith the LORD.

NoteA soft heart means he was ready to listen. He was truly sorry about what was wrong.

28"I will let you die and join your family in peace. You will be buried before the trouble comes. Your eyes will not see the hard things I will bring on this place and its people." So the men took her answer back to the king.

Behold, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace, neither shall thine eyes see all the evil that I will bring upon this place, and upon the inhabitants of the same. So they brought the king word again.

NoteJoining your family meant being buried where they were buried. It was a gentle way of saying he would die first.

7Josiah gave the people 30,000 lambs and young goats for the Passover offerings. He gave 3,000 bulls too. Every animal came from his own flocks and herds.

And Josiah gave to the people, of the flock, lambs and kids, all for the passover offerings, for all that were present, to the number of thirty thousand, and three thousand bullocks: these were of the king’s substance.

NoteAn offering is a gift given to God. Here the gift was an animal from the flock. Every family needed one, so the king gave away many.

8His leaders gave gladly to the people, the priests, and the Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel were in charge of God's house. They gave the priests 2,600 sheep and goats and 300 bulls.

And his princes gave willingly unto the people, to the priests, and to the Levites: Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gave unto the priests for the passover offerings two thousand and six hundred small cattle, and three hundred oxen.

9Conaniah gave too, with his brothers Shemaiah and Nethaneel. So did Hashabiah, Jeiel, and Jozabad. All of them were leaders of the Levites. They gave the Levites 5,000 sheep and goats and 500 bulls.

Conaniah also, and Shemaiah and Nethaneel, his brethren, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gave unto the Levites for passover offerings five thousand small cattle, and five hundred oxen.