Read the Modern Pastor’s Version

Josiah observed a Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem. The people slaughtered the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.

The king set the priests in their duties and encouraged them to serve faithfully in the house of the Lord. He said to the Levites who taught all Israel, "Put the holy ark in the house that Solomon son of David king of Israel built; it shall no longer be a burden on your shoulders: serve now the Lord your God and his people Israel." Josiah instructed them to prepare themselves by their ancestral households, according to the instructions of David king of Israel and those of Solomon his son.

The Levites were to stand in the holy place according to the divisions of their brethren, the people, and after the division of the families of the Levites. They were to kill the passover, sanctify themselves, and prepare their brethren to do according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses. Josiah gave to the people from his own flocks lambs and kids for the Passover offerings, numbering thirty thousand and three thousand bullocks.

The princes willingly gave to the people, to the priests, and to the Levites, with Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel contributing 2,600 small cattle and 300 oxen for the priests' Passover offerings. Other leaders contributed five thousand small cattle and five hundred oxen as Passover offerings for the Levites.

The service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, with the Levites in their courses, according to the king's commandment. The priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levites skinned them after they had slaughtered the Passover. They removed the burnt offerings to distribute them according to the family divisions of the people.

The priests roasted the Passover with fire according to the ordinance, but cooked the other holy offerings in pots, caldrons, and pans, and distributed them quickly among all the people. The Levites prepared for themselves and for the priests, who were busy until night with the burnt offerings and the fat. Afterward, they prepared food for themselves.

The singers stood in their designated place according to the commands of David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, while the porters remained at every gate, unable to leave their assigned duties. The Levite brethren had prepared for them, so all the service of the Lord was prepared on that day to keep the Passover and offer burnt offerings on the altar.

The Israelites who were present kept the Passover at that time, and they observed the feast of unleavened bread for seven days. It was a celebration unlike any other in Israel's history, with priests, Levites, and all Judah and Israel participating. This took place in the eighteenth year of King Josiah's reign.

When the temple had been prepared, Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against Carchemish by the Euphrates River. Josiah went out to meet him, but Neco sent ambassadors to tell him, "What have I to do with you, King of Judah? Today I am not attacking you, but against the house with which I have war; for God has commanded me to make haste: leave God alone, who is with me, lest he destroy you."

Josiah refused to turn away from Necho and went to fight in the valley of Megiddo. The archers shot at King Josiah, severely wounding him. His servants took him out of his chariot and put him in another one, bringing him back to Jerusalem where he died and was buried in a family tomb. All Judah and Jerusalem mourned Josiah's death.

Jeremiah lamented for Josiah, and all the singers and musicians spoke about him in their songs, establishing a lasting tradition in Israel. Their laments were recorded in the book of Lamentations, so that future generations would remember King Josiah's goodness. The rest of his acts and deeds are recorded in the annals of Israel and Judah.