2 Chronicles 29

NEW JERUSALEM	DOUAI-RHEIMS
1 Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he came to the throne and he reigned for twenty-nine yearsin Jerusalem. His mother's name was Abijah daughter of Zechariah.	1 Now Ezechias began to reign, when he was five and twenty years old, and he reigned nine and twenty years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Abia, the daughter of Zacharias.
2 He did what Yahweh regards as right, just as his ancestor David had done.	2 And he did that which was pleasing in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done.
3 In the first month of the first year of his reign, he opened the doors of the Temple of Yahweh, havingrepaired them.	3 In the first year and month of his reign he opened the doors of the house of the Lord, and repaired them.
4 He then brought in the priests and the Levites, assembled them in the eastern square,	4 And he brought the priests and the Levites, and assembled them in the east street.
5 and said to them, 'Listen to me, Levites! First sanctify yourselves, then sanctify the Temple ofYahweh, God of your ancestors, and remove the filth from the sanctuary.	5 And he said to them: Hear me, ye Levites, and be sanctified, purify the house of the Lord the God of your fathers, and take away all filth out of the sanctuary.
6 Our ancestors were unfaithful, and did what is displeasing to Yahweh our God. They abandoned him,turned their faces away from Yahweh's home and turned their backs on him.	6 Our fathers have sinned and done evil in the sight of the Lord God, forsaking him: they have turned away their faces from the tabernacle of the Lord, and turned their backs.
7 They even closed the doors of the portico, put out the lamps and stopped burning incense and makingburnt offerings in the sanctuary of the God of Israel.	7 They have shut up the doors that were in tile porch, and put out the lamps. and have not burnt incense, nor offered holocausts in the sanctuary of the God of Israel.
8 This was why Yahweh's anger fel on Judah and Jerusalem and he made them an object of terror,astonishment and derision, as you can see for yourselves.	8 Therefore the wrath of the Lord hath been stirred up against Juda and Jerusalem, and he hath delivered them to trouble, and to destruction, and to be hissed at, as you see with your eyes.
9 Yes, our ancestors were put to the sword, and our sons, our daughters and our wives were takencaptive because of this.	9 Behold, our fathers are fallen by the sword, our sons, and our daughters, and wives are led away captives for this wickedness.
10 I am now determined to make a covenant with Yahweh, God of Israel, so that his fierce anger mayturn away from us.	10 Now therefore I have a mind that we make a covenant with the Lord the God of Israel, and he will turn away the wrath of his indignation from us.
11 Now, my sons, do not be remiss, for Yahweh has chosen you to stand in his presence and serve himby conducting his worship and offering him incense.'	11 My sons, be not negligent: the Lord hath chosen you to stand before him, and to minister to him, and to worship him, and to burn incense to him.
12 The Levites set about it -- Mahath son of Amasai and Joel son of Azariah, from the Kohathites; Kishson of Abdi and Azariah son of Jehal el, from the Merarites; Joah son of Zimmah and Eden son of Joah, from theGershonites;	12 Then the Levites arose, Mahath the son of Amasai, and Joel the son of Azarias, of the sons of Caath: and of the sons of Merari, Cis the son of Abdi, and Azarias the son of Jalaleel. And of the sons of Gerson, Joah the son of Zemma, and Eden the son of Joah.
13 Shimri and Jeuel, of the sons of Elizaphan; Zechariah and Mattaniah of the sons of Asaph;	13 And of the sons of Elisaphan, Samri, and Jahiel. Also of the sons of Asaph, Zacharias, and Mathanias.
14 Jehiel and Shimei of the sons of Heman; Shemaiah and Uzziel of the sons of Jeduthun-	14 And of the sons of Heman, Jahiel, and Semei: and of the sons of Idithun, Semeias, and Oziel.
15 and gathered their brothers together; they sanctified themselves, and in obedience to the king'sorder, in accordance with the words of Yahweh, they came to purify the Temple of Yahweh.	15 And they gathered together their brethren, and sanctified themselves, and went in according to the commandment of the king, and the precept of the Lord, to purify the house of God.
16 The priests went into the inner part of the Temple of Yahweh to purify it. They brought al the uncleanthings which they found in Yahweh's sanctuary, out into the court of the Temple of Yahweh, where the Levitescol ected them and took them out to the Kidron Val ey.	16 And the priests went into the temple of the Lord to sanctify it, and brought out all the uncleanness that they found within to the entrance of the house of the Lord, and the Levites took it away, and carried it out abroad to the torrent Cedron.
17 They began sanctifying on the first day of the first month, and by the eighth day of the month hadreached Yahweh's portico; thus they took eight days to sanctify the Temple of Yahweh, and by the sixteenth dayof the first month everything was finished.	17 And they began to cleanse on the first day of the first month, and on the eighth day of the same month they came into the porch of the temple of the Lord, and they purified the temple in eight days, and on the sixteenth day of the same month they finished what they had begun.
18 They then waited on King Hezekiah and said, 'We have purified the whole Temple of Yahweh, thealtar of burnt offering with al its equipment and the table for the loaves of permanent offering with al theirequipment.	18 And they went is to king Ezechias, and said to him: We have sanctified all the house of the Lord, and the altar of holocaust, and the vessels thereof, and the table of proposition with all its vessels,
19 We have also got ready and sanctified al the equipment which King Ahaz in his infidelity hadremoved during his reign. It is al ready in front of Yahweh's altar.'	19 And all the furniture of the temple, which king Achaz in his reign had defiled, after his transgression; and behold they are all set forth before the altar of the Lord.
20 King Hezekiah lost no time but cal ed the officials of the city together and went up to the Temple ofYahweh.	20 And king Ezechias rising early, assembled all the rulers of the city, and went up into the house of the Lord:
21 They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs and seven goats as a sin sacrifice for the royalhouse, for the sanctuary and for Judah, and he ordered the Aaronite priests to offer them on Yahweh's altar.	21 And they offered together seven bullocks, and seven rams, and seven lambs, and seven he goats for sin, for the kingdom, for the sanctuary, for Juda: and he spoke to the priests the sons of Aaron, to offer them upon the altar of the Lord.
22 So they slaughtered the bul s and the priests took the blood and sprinkled it over the altar. They thenslaughtered the rams and sprinkled the blood over the altar; and they slaughtered the lambs and sprinkled theblood over the altar.	22 Therefore they killed the bullocks, and the priests took the blood, and poured it upon the altar; they killed also the rams, and their blood they poured also upon the altar, and they killed the lambs, and poured the blood upon the altar.
23 Then they brought the goats, the sacrifice for sin, before the king and the assembly who laid theirhands on them.	23 And they brought the he goats for sin before the king, and the whole multitude, and they laid their hand upon them:
24 The priests slaughtered them and made a sacrifice for sin with their blood at the altar to expiate foral Israel, since the king had ordered the burnt offering and the sacrifice for sin on behalf of al Israel.	24 And the priests immolated them, and sprinkled their blood before the altar for an expiation of all Israel: for the king had commanded that the holocaust and the sin offering should be made for all Israel.
25 He positioned the Levites in the Temple of Yahweh with cymbals, lyres and harps, in accordancewith the ordinance of David, of Gad the king's seer and of Nathan the prophet, for such was Yahweh's orderconveyed through his prophets.	25 And he set the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, and psalteries, and harps according to the regulation of David the king, and of Gad the seer, and of Nathan the prophet: for it was the commandment of the Lord by the hand of his prophets.
26 When the Levites stood with David's musical instruments, and the priests with the trumpets,	26 And the Levites stood, with the instruments of David, and the priests with trumpets.
27 Hezekiah ordered the burnt offering to be presented on the altar. And as the burnt offering began,the hymns of Yahweh began too, and the trumpets sounded, to the accompaniment of the instruments of Davidking of Israel,	27 And Ezechias commanded that they should offer holocausts upon the altar: and when the holocausts were offered, they began to sing praises to the Lord, and to sound with trumpets, and divers instruments which David the king of Israel had prepared.
28 while the whole congregation worshipped, the singers singing and the trumpeters sounding thetrumpets, continuously until the burnt offering was over.	28 And all the multitude adored, and the singers, and the trumpeters, were in their office till the holocaust was finished.
29 When the burnt offering was finished, the king and al those present with him fell to their knees andworshipped.	29 And when the oblation was ended, the king, and all that were with him bowed down and adored.
30 Then King Hezekiah and the officials told the Levites to sing praise to Yahweh in the words of Davidand Asaph the seer; and joyfully they sang their praises, then knelt in worship.	30 And Ezechias and the princes commanded the Levites to praise the Lord with the words of David, and Asaph the seer: and they praised him with great joy, and bowing the knee adored.
31 Hezekiah spoke again, 'Now that you have consecrated yourselves to Yahweh, come forward andbring thanksgiving sacrifices to the Temple of Yahweh.' Then the congregation brought thanksgiving sacrificesand those who were generous brought burnt offerings.	31 And Ezechias added, and said: You have filled your hands to the Lord, come and offer victims, and praises in the house of the Lord. And all the multitude offered victims, and praises, and holocausts with a devout mind.
32 The number of burnt offerings brought by the congregation was seventy bul s, a hundred rams andtwo hundred lambs, al as burnt offerings for Yahweh.	32 And the number of the holocausts which the multitude offered, was seventy bullocks, a hundred rams, and two hundred lambs.
33 The consecrated gifts amounted to six hundred bul s and three thousand sheep.	33 And they consecrated to the Lord six hundred oxen, and three thousand sheep.
34 The priests were too few, however, and were unable to dismember al the burnt offerings, so theirbrothers, the Levites, helped them until the work was finished and the priests had sanctified themselves; for theLevites had been more conscientious about sanctifying themselves than the priests had.	34 But the priests were few, and were not enough to flay the holocausts: wherefore the Levites their brethren helped them, till the work was ended, and priests were sanctified, for the Levites are sanctified with an easier rite than the priests.
35 In addition to the abundance of burnt offerings, there were also the fatty pieces for communionsacrifices and the libations for the burnt offerings. And so the liturgy of Yahweh's Temple was restored,	35 So there were many holocausts, and the fat of peace offerings, and the libations of holocausts: and the service of the house of the Lord was completed.
36 and Hezekiah and al the people rejoiced over what God had provided for the people, sinceeverything had happened so suddenly.	36 And Ezechias, and all the people rejoiced because the ministry of the Lord was accomplished. For the resolution of doing this thing was taken suddenly.