Hezekiah Proclaims a Passover
And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, to come to the house of the LORD in Jerusalem, to keep a Passover to the LORD, the God of Israel.
And the king and his officials and all the assembly in Jerusalem took counsel to keep the Passover in the second month —
for they could not keep it at that time, because the priests had not consecrated themselves in sufficient number, and the people had not gathered to Jerusalem.
And the thing was upright in the eyes of the king and in the eyes of all the assembly.
And they made the word stand, to pass a call through all Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, to come to keep a Passover to the LORD, the God of Israel, in Jerusalem — for not in great numbers had they kept it as written.
And the runners went with the letters from the hand of the king and his officials, through all Israel and Judah, and according to the commandment of the king, saying: “Sons of Israel — turn back to the LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, that he may turn back to the survivors of you who remain from the palm of the kings of Assyria.
And do not be like your fathers and like your brothers, who broke faith with the LORD, the God of their fathers, so that he gave them up to horror — as you see.
Now do not stiffen your neck like your fathers. Give the hand to the LORD, and come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever; and serve the LORD your God, so that the burning of his anger may turn back from you.
For when you turn back to the LORD, your brothers and your sons will find compassion before their captors, and will return to this land — for gracious and compassionate is the LORD your God, and he will not turn his face away from you, if you turn back to him.”
And the runners were passing from city to city in the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun; but they were laughing at them and mocking them.
Yet some men from Asher and Manasseh and from Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem.
Also in Judah the hand of God was there, to give them one heart, to do the commandment of the king and the officials, by the word of the LORD.
Hezekiah Celebrates the Passover
And many people gathered at Jerusalem to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the second month — a very great assembly.
And they rose and removed the altars that were in Jerusalem; and all the incense altars they removed, and threw them into the ravine of the Kidron.
And they slaughtered the Passover on the fourteenth of the second month. And the priests and the Levites were ashamed, and consecrated themselves, and brought burnt offerings into the house of the LORD.
And they stood at their station, according to their custom, according to the instruction of Moses, the man of God — the priests throwing the blood from the hand of the Levites.
For there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves; so the Levites were over the slaughtering of the Passover lambs for everyone not clean, to consecrate them to the LORD.
For a majority of the people — many from Ephraim and Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun — had not purified themselves, but ate the Passover otherwise than as written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying: “May the good LORD make atonement for
everyone who has set his heart to seek God — the LORD, the God of his fathers — though not according to the purity of the holy place.”
And the LORD listened to Hezekiah, and healed the people.
And the sons of Israel who were present in Jerusalem kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with great joy; and the Levites and the priests were praising the LORD day by day, with instruments of strength, to the LORD.
And Hezekiah spoke to the heart of all the Levites who showed good understanding for the LORD. And they ate the appointed feast for the seven days, sacrificing peace offerings and giving thanks to the LORD, the God of their fathers.
And all the assembly took counsel to keep another seven days; and they kept seven days with joy.
For Hezekiah, king of Judah, had contributed to the assembly a thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep, and the officials had contributed to the assembly a thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep; and priests consecrated themselves in great numbers.
And all the assembly of Judah rejoiced, and the priests and the Levites, and all the assembly that came from Israel, and the foreigners coming from the land of Israel and those living in Judah.
And there was great joy in Jerusalem — for since the days of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem.
And the priests, the Levites, rose and blessed the people; and their voice was heard, and their prayer came to his holy dwelling, to the heavens.