Ezequias e a Purificação do Templo
1Ezequias tinha vinte e cinco anos de idade quando começou a reinar e reinou vinte e nove anos em Jerusalém. O nome de sua mãe era Abia, filha de Zacarias. 2Ele fez o que o Senhor aprova, tal como tinha feito Davi, seu predecessor.
3No primeiro mês do primeiro ano de seu reinado, ele reabriu as portas do templo do Senhor e as consertou. 4Convocou os sacerdotes e os levitas, reuniu-os na praça que fica no lado leste 5e disse: “Escutem-me, levitas! Consagrem-se agora e consagrem o templo do Senhor, o Deus dos seus antepassados. Retirem tudo o que é impuro do santuário. 6Nossos pais foram infiéis; fizeram o que o Senhor, o nosso Deus, reprova e o abandonaram. Desviaram o rosto do local da habitação do Senhor e deram-lhe as costas. 7Também fecharam as portas do pórtico e apagaram as lâmpadas. Não queimaram incenso nem apresentaram holocausto no santuário para o Deus de Israel. 8Por isso a ira do Senhor caiu sobre Judá e sobre Jerusalém; e ele fez deles objeto de espanto, horror e zombaria, conforme vocês podem ver com os seus próprios olhos. 9Por isso os nossos pais caíram à espada e os nossos filhos, as nossas filhas e as nossas mulheres foram levados como prisioneiros. 10Pretendo, pois, agora fazer uma aliança com o Senhor, o Deus de Israel, para que o fogo da sua ira se afaste de nós. 11Meus filhos, não sejam negligentes agora, pois o Senhor os escolheu para estarem diante dele e o servirem, para ministrarem perante ele e queimarem incenso”.
12Então estes levitas puseram-se a trabalhar:
entre os descendentes de Coate:
Maate, filho de Amasai, e Joel, filho de Azarias;
entre os descendentes de Merari:
Quis, filho de Abdi, e Azarias, filho de Jealelel;
entre os descendentes de Gérson:
Joá, filho de Zima, e Éden, filho de Joá;
13entre os descendentes de Elisafã:
Sinri e Jeuel;
entre os descendentes de Asafe:
Zacarias e Matanias;
14entre os descendentes de Hemã:
Jeuel e Simei;
entre os descendentes de Jedutum:
Semaías e Uziel.
15Tendo reunido e consagrado os seus parentes, os levitas foram purificar o templo do Senhor, conforme o rei havia ordenado, em obediência à palavra do Senhor. 16Os sacerdotes entraram no santuário do Senhor para purificá-lo e trouxeram para o pátio do templo do Senhor todas as coisas impuras que lá havia, e os levitas as levaram para o vale de Cedrom. 17Começaram a consagração no primeiro dia do primeiro mês e no oitavo dia chegaram ao pórtico do Senhor. Durante mais oito dias consagraram o templo do Senhor propriamente dito, terminando tudo no décimo sexto dia.
18Depois foram falar com o rei Ezequias e lhe relataram: “Purificamos todo o templo do Senhor, o altar dos holocaustos e a mesa do pão consagrado, ambos com todos os seus utensílios. 19Preparamos e consagramos todos os utensílios que o rei Acaz, em sua infidelidade, retirou durante o seu reinado. Eles estão em frente ao altar do Senhor”.
20Cedo, na manhã seguinte, o rei Ezequias reuniu os líderes da cidade e, juntos, subiram ao templo do Senhor, 21levando sete novilhos, sete carneiros, sete cordeiros e sete bodes como oferta pelo pecado, em favor da realeza, do santuário e de Judá. O rei ordenou que os sacerdotes, descendentes de Arão, sacrificassem os animais no altar do Senhor. 22Então os sacerdotes abateram os novilhos e aspergiram o sangue sobre o altar; em seguida, fizeram o mesmo com os carneiros e com os cordeiros. 23Depois, os bodes para a oferta pelo pecado foram levados para diante do rei e da assembleia, que impuseram as mãos sobre eles. 24Os sacerdotes abateram os bodes e apresentaram o sangue sobre o altar como oferta pelo pecado, para fazer propiciação por todo o Israel, pois era em favor de todo o Israel que o rei havia ordenado o holocausto e a oferta pelo pecado.
25O rei posicionou os levitas no templo do Senhor, com címbalos, liras e harpas, segundo a prescrição de Davi, de Gade, vidente do rei, e do profeta Natã; isso foi ordenado pelo Senhor, por meio de seus profetas. 26Assim os levitas ficaram em pé, preparados com os instrumentos de Davi, e os sacerdotes com as cornetas.
27Então Ezequias ordenou que sacrificassem o holocausto sobre o altar. Iniciado o sacrifício, começou também o canto em louvor ao Senhor, ao som das cornetas e dos instrumentos de Davi, rei de Israel. 28Toda a assembleia prostrou-se em adoração, enquanto os músicos cantavam e os corneteiros tocavam, até que terminou o holocausto.
29Então o rei e todos os presentes ajoelharam-se e adoraram. 30O rei Ezequias e seus oficiais ordenaram aos levitas que louvassem o Senhor com as palavras de Davi e do vidente Asafe. Eles o louvaram com alegria, depois inclinaram suas cabeças e o adoraram.
31Disse então Ezequias: “Agora que vocês se dedicaram ao Senhor, tragam sacrifícios e ofertas de gratidão ao templo do Senhor”. Assim, a comunidade levou sacrifícios e ofertas de gratidão, e alguns, espontaneamente, levaram também holocaustos.
32Esses holocaustos que a assembleia ofertou ao Senhor foram setenta bois, cem carneiros e duzentos cordeiros. 33Os animais consagrados como sacrifícios chegaram a seiscentos bois e três mil ovelhas e bodes. 34Como os sacerdotes eram muito poucos para tirar a pele de todos os holocaustos, os seus parentes, os levitas, os ajudaram até o fim da tarefa e até que outros sacerdotes se consagrassem, pois os levitas demoraram menos que os sacerdotes para consagrar-se. 35Houve holocaustos em grande quantidade, oferecidos com a gordura das ofertas de comunhão29.35 Ou de paz; também em 30.22; 31.2 e 33.16. e com as ofertas derramadas que acompanhavam esses holocaustos.
Assim foi restabelecido o culto no templo do Senhor. 36Ezequias e todo o povo regozijavam-se com o que Deus havia feito por seu povo, e tudo em tão pouco tempo.
Hezekiah Purifies the Temple
1Hezekiah was 25 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 29 years. His mother’s name was Abijah. She was the daughter of Zechariah. 2Hezekiah did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as King David had done.
3In the first month of Hezekiah’s first year as king, he opened the doors of the Lord’s temple. He repaired them. 4He brought the priests and Levites in. He gathered them together in the open area on the east side of the temple. 5He said, “Levites, listen to me! Set yourselves apart to the Lord. Set apart the temple of the Lord. He’s the God of your people who lived long ago. Remove anything ‘unclean’ from the temple. 6Our people weren’t faithful. They did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord our God. They deserted him. They turned their faces away from the place where he lives. They turned their backs on him. 7They also shut the doors of the temple porch. They put the lamps out. They didn’t burn incense at the temple. They didn’t sacrifice burnt offerings there to the God of Israel. 8So the Lord has become angry with Judah and Jerusalem. He has made them look so bad that everyone is shocked when they see them. They laugh at them. You can see it with your own eyes. 9That’s why our fathers have been killed by swords. That’s why our sons and daughters and wives have become prisoners. 10So I’m planning to make a covenant with the Lord, the God of Israel. Then he’ll stop being angry with us. 11My sons, don’t fail to obey the Lord. He has chosen you to stand in front of him and work for him. He wants you to serve him and burn incense to him.”
12Here are the Levites who went to work.
Mahath and Joel were from the family line of Kohath.
Mahath was the son of Amasai. Joel was the son of Azariah.
Kish and Azariah were from the family line of Merari.
Kish was the son of Abdi. Azariah was the son of Jehallelel.
Joah and Eden were from the family line of Gershon.
Joah was the son of Zimmah. Eden was the son of Joah.
13Shimri and Jeiel were from the family line of Elizaphan.
Zechariah and Mattaniah were from the family line of Asaph.
14Jehiel and Shimei were from the family line of Heman.
Shemaiah and Uzziel were from the family line of Jeduthun.
15All these Levites gathered the other Levites together. They set themselves apart to the Lord. Then they went in to purify the Lord’s temple. That’s what the king had ordered them to do. They did what the Lord told them to. 16The priests went into the Lord’s temple to make it pure. They brought out to the temple courtyard everything that was “unclean.” They had found “unclean” things in the Lord’s temple. The Levites took them and carried them out to the Kidron Valley. 17On the first day of the first month they began to set everything in the temple apart to the Lord. By the eighth day of the month they reached the Lord’s porch. For eight more days they set the Lord’s temple itself apart to him. They finished on the 16th day of the first month.
18Then they went to King Hezekiah. They reported, “We’ve purified the whole temple of the Lord. That includes the altar for burnt offerings and all its tools. It also includes the table for the holy bread and all its objects. 19We’ve prepared all the things King Ahaz had removed. We’ve set them apart to the Lord. Ahaz had removed them while he was king. He wasn’t faithful to the Lord. Those things are now in front of the Lord’s altar.”
20Early the next morning King Hezekiah gathered together the city officials. They all went up to the Lord’s temple. 21They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven male lambs and seven male goats with them. They sacrificed the animals as a sin offering for the kingdom, for the temple and for Judah. The king commanded the priests to offer them on the Lord’s altar. The priests were from the family line of Aaron. 22They killed the bulls. Then they splashed the blood against the altar. Next they killed the rams and splashed the blood against the altar. Then they killed the lambs and splashed the blood against the altar. 23The goats for the sin offering were brought to the king and the whole community. They placed their hands on them. 24Then the priests killed the goats. They put the blood on the altar as a sin offering. It paid for the sin of the whole nation of Israel. The king had ordered the burnt offering and the sin offering for the whole nation.
25Hezekiah stationed the Levites in the Lord’s temple. They had cymbals, harps and lyres. They did everything in the way King David, his prophet Gad, and Nathan the prophet had required. The Lord had given commands about all these things through his prophets. 26So the Levites stood ready with David’s musical instruments. And the priests had their trumpets ready.
27Hezekiah gave the order to sacrifice the burnt offering on the altar. The offering began. Singing to the Lord also began. The singing was accompanied by the trumpets and by the instruments of David. He had been king of Israel. 28The whole community bowed down. They worshiped the Lord. At the same time the musicians played their musical instruments. The priests blew their trumpets. All of that continued until the burnt offering had been sacrificed.
29So the offerings were finished. King Hezekiah got down on his knees. He worshiped the Lord. So did everyone who was with him. 30The king and his officials ordered the Levites to praise the Lord. They used the words of David and Asaph the prophet. They sang praises with joy. They bowed down and worshiped the Lord.
31Then Hezekiah said, “You have set yourselves apart to the Lord. Come and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to his temple.” So the whole community brought sacrifices and thank offerings. Everyone who wanted to brought burnt offerings.
32The whole community brought 70 bulls, 100 rams and 200 male lambs. They brought all of them as burnt offerings to the Lord. 33The total number of animals set apart as sacrifices to the Lord was 600 bulls and 3,000 sheep and goats. 34But there weren’t enough priests to skin all the burnt offerings. So their relatives, the Levites, helped them. They worked until the task was finished. By that time other priests had been set apart to the Lord. The Levites had been more careful than the priests when they set themselves apart. 35There were large numbers of burnt offerings, along with the drink offerings and the fat from the friendship offerings. They were offered along with the burnt offerings.
So the service of the Lord’s temple was started up again. 36Hezekiah and all the people were filled with joy. That’s because everything had been done so quickly. God had provided for his people in a wonderful way.
