1The Passover Feast came to an end. The people of Israel who were in Jerusalem went out to the towns of Judah. They smashed the sacred stones. They cut down the poles used to worship the female god named Asherah. They destroyed the high places and the altars. They did those things all through Judah and Benjamin. They also did them in Ephraim and Manasseh. They destroyed all the objects used to worship other gods. Then the Israelites returned to their own towns and property.
The People Bring Gifts to the Lord
2Hezekiah put the priests and Levites in groups based on their duties. The priests sacrificed burnt offerings and friendship offerings. The Levites served the Lord by giving thanks and singing praises at the gates of his house. 3The king gave some of his own possessions to the temple. He gave them for the morning and evening burnt offerings. He gave them for the burnt offerings for every Sabbath day. He gave them for the burnt offerings for every New Moon feast. And he gave them for the burnt offerings for every yearly appointed feast. He did it in keeping with what is written in the Law of the Lord. 4Hezekiah gave an order to the people who were living in Jerusalem. He commanded them to give to the priests and Levites the share they owed them. Then the priests and Levites could give their full attention to the Law of the Lord. 5The order went out. Right away the people of Israel began to give freely. They gave the first share of the harvest of their grain, fresh wine, olive oil and honey. They also gave the first share of everything else their fields produced. They brought a large amount. It was a tenth of everything. 6Here is what the people of Israel and Judah who lived in the towns of Judah brought. They brought a tenth of their herds and flocks. They also brought a tenth of the holy things they had set apart to the Lord their God. They put them in piles. 7They began doing it in the third month. They finished in the seventh month. 8Hezekiah and his officials came and saw the piles. When they did, they praised the Lord. And they blessed his people Israel.
9Hezekiah asked the priests and Levites about the piles. 10Azariah the chief priest answered him. He said, “The people have been bringing their gifts to the Lord’s temple. Ever since they began to bring them, we’ve had enough to eat. We have even had plenty to spare. That’s because the Lord has blessed his people. So we have a large amount left over.” Azariah was from the family line of Zadok.
11Hezekiah gave orders to prepare storerooms in the Lord’s temple. And it was done. 12The people were faithful. They brought in their offerings and a tenth of everything they produced. They also brought the gifts they had set apart to the Lord. Konaniah the Levite was in charge of everything they brought. His brother Shimei was next in command after him. 13Konaniah and his brother Shimei had helpers who worked with them. Their names were Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismakiah, Mahath and Benaiah. King Hezekiah and Azariah had appointed them. Azariah was the official in charge of God’s temple.
14Kore the Levite guarded the East Gate. He was in charge of the offerings people chose to give to God. He handed out the offerings made to the Lord. He also handed out the gifts that had been set apart to the Lord. Kore was the son of Imnah. 15Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah and Shekaniah helped Kore. They were faithful in helping him in the towns of the priests. They handed out gifts to their brother priests, group by group. They gave the gifts to old men and young men alike.
16In addition to that, they handed out gifts to the males who were three years old or more. The names of those males were listed in their family history. All of them would enter the Lord’s temple. They would carry out their duties each day. Each group did all the different things it was supposed to do. 17Kore and his Levite companions also handed out gifts to the priests. The priests were listed by their families in their family history. Those Levites also handed out gifts to the Levites who were 20 years old or more. Each group did all the different things it was supposed to do. 18Those groups included all the little ones, the wives, and the sons and daughters of the whole community. All of them were listed in their family history. They were faithful in setting themselves apart to serve the Lord.
19Some of the priests lived in other towns or on farms around their towns. They were from the family line of Aaron. Men were chosen by name to hand out shares to those priests. They gave a share to every male among them. They also gave a share to everyone whose name was written down in the family history of the Levites.
20That’s what Hezekiah did all through Judah. He did what was good and right. He was faithful to the Lord his God. 21He tried to obey his God. He worked for him with all his heart. That’s the way he worked in everything he did to serve God’s temple. He obeyed the law. He followed the Lord’s commands. So he had success.
1Када је све било завршено, сви Израиљци који су били присутни, отишли су у Јудина места. Тамо су развалили стубове, посекли су Аштартине ступове, оборили су узвишице и жртвенике из читаве Јуде, Венијамина, Јефрема и Манасије, док их све нису уништили. Затим су се вратили сви Израиљци, сваки на свој посед и у своје место.
Прилози за богослужење
2Језекија је поставио свештенике у редове и Левите у њихове редове према њиховој служби – и свештенике и Левите – за жртве свеспалнице, жртве мира, да служе, да славе и хвале на вратима Господњег табора. 3Цар је приложио од својих добара за жртве свеспалнице које се приносе ујутру и увече, као и за оне које се приносе суботама, младинама и одређеним празницима како је записано у Закону Господњем. 4Онда је рекао народу, житељима Јерусалима, да дају део свештеницима и Левитима како би се учврстили у Закону Господњем. 5Када се ова вест разгласила, Израиљци су почели да доносе обиље првина у житу, младом вину, уљу, меду и свим пољским плодовима; и десетак од свега су донели у изобиљу. 6Израиљци и Јудејци, који су пребивали у градовима Јуде, такође су дали десетак од крда говеда и стада ситне стоке. И десетак од светих ствари које су биле посвећене Господу, њиховом Богу, доносили су га и слагали све гомилу на гомилу. 7Трећег месеца су почели да доносе на гомиле а у седмом месецу су завршили. 8Када су Језекија и кнезови дошли и видели гомиле, благословили су Господа и његов народ Израиљ.
9Језекија се распитивао о гомилама код свештеника и Левита. 10И рече му Азарија, Првосвештеник од Садоковог дома: „Од када су почели да доносе прилог за Дом Господњи, јели смо и наситили смо се, јер смо имали и више него што нам је потребно, у изобиљу. Јер је Господ благословио свој народ, па је свега преостало у изобиљу.“
11Језекија им је заповедио да припреме ризнице у Дому Господњем и они су их припремили. 12Верно су унели прилоге, десетке и свете ствари, а све су надгледали старешина Хенанија Левит и његов брат Семај, који му је био заменик. 13Јехило, Азазија, Нахат, Асаило, Јеримот, Јозавад, Елило, Исмахиа, Махат и Венаја су били надгледници уз Хенанију и његовог брата Семаја, по заповести цара Језекије и Азарије, старешине Господњег Дома.
14А Кореј, син Јемне Левита, чувар источних врата, био је задужен над добровољним прилозима за Бога, за расподелу Господњих прилога и најсветијих ствари. 15Под његовом управом су били Еден, Минијамин, Исус, Семај, Амарија и Сеханија у свештеничким градовима, да би верно делили својој браћи по редовима, како великима тако и малима.
16Поред оних који су били уписани у родослове: мушкарци старији од три године, сви који су били у Господњем Дому по дневном распореду, сваки дан у служби њихових дужности, а према своме реду. 17У родослов свештеника су ушле отачке куће и Левити старији од двадесет година, према дужностима својих редова. 18У родослове су уписана сва њихова деца, њихове жене, њихови синови и ћерке целе заједнице, јер су се верно посветили Светињи.
19Затим потомци Аронови, свештеници на пољима и пашњацима њихових градова. У сваком граду су били људи који су били поименце задужени за поделу делова сваком мушкарцу међу свештеницима и Левитима из родослова.
20Језекија је ово урадио по свој Јуди, а радио је добро, праведно и истинито пред Господом, својим Богом. 21Успевао је у сваком послу који би отпочињао, у служби Божијег Дома, у Закону и у заповестима, јер је тражио свим срцем свог Бога.
