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Josiah Observes the Passover
35 Josiah observed a Passover festival for the Lord in Jerusalem. They slaughtered the Passover lambs on the fourteenth day of the first month. 2 He appointed the priests to fulfill their duties and encouraged them to carry out their service in the Lord’s temple. 3 He told the Levites, who instructed all Israel about things consecrated to the Lord, “Place the holy ark in the temple which King Solomon son of David of Israel built. Don’t carry it on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and his people Israel! 4 Prepare yourselves by your families according to your divisions, as instructed in writing by King David of Israel and his son Solomon. 5 Stand in the sanctuary and, together with the Levites, represent the family divisions of your countrymen.[a] 6 Slaughter the Passover lambs, consecrate yourselves, and make preparations for your countrymen to celebrate[b] according to the Lord’s message which came through Moses.”
7 From his own royal flocks and herds, Josiah supplied the people with 30,000 lambs and goats for the Passover sacrifice, as well as 3,000 cattle.[c] 8 His officials also willingly contributed to the people, priests, and Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, the leaders of God’s temple, gave the priests 2,600 Passover sacrifices and 300 cattle. 9 Konaniah and his brothers Shemaiah and Nethanel, along with Hashabiah, Jeiel, and Jozabad, the officials of the Levites, supplied the Levites with 5,000 Passover sacrifices and 500 cattle. 10 Preparations were made,[d] and the priests stood at their posts and the Levites in their divisions as prescribed by the king. 11 They slaughtered the Passover lambs and the priests splashed the blood,[e] while the Levites skinned the animals. 12 They reserved the burnt offerings and the cattle for the family divisions of the people to present to the Lord, as prescribed in the scroll of Moses.[f] 13 They cooked the Passover sacrifices over the open fire as prescribed and cooked the consecrated offerings in pots, kettles, and pans. They quickly served them to all the people. 14 Afterward they made preparations for themselves and for the priests, because the priests, the descendants of Aaron, were offering burnt sacrifices and fat portions until evening. The Levites made preparations for themselves and for the priests, the descendants of Aaron. 15 The musicians, the descendants of Asaph, manned their posts, as prescribed by David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun the king’s prophet.[g] The guards at the various gates did not need to leave their posts, for their fellow Levites made preparations for them. 16 So all the preparations for the Lord’s service were made that day, as the Passover was observed and the burnt sacrifices were offered on the altar of the Lord, as prescribed by King Josiah. 17 So the Israelites who were present observed the Passover at that time, as well as the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days. 18 A Passover like this had not been observed in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet. None of the kings of Israel had observed a Passover like the one celebrated by Josiah, the priests, the Levites, all the people of Judah and Israel who were there, and the residents of Jerusalem. 19 This Passover was observed in the eighteenth year of Josiah’s reign.
Josiah’s Reign Ends
20 After Josiah had done all this for the temple,[h] King Necho of Egypt marched up to do battle at Carchemish on the Euphrates River.[i] Josiah marched out to oppose him. 21 Necho[j] sent messengers to him, saying, “Why are you opposing me, O king of Judah?[k] I am not attacking you today, but the kingdom with which I am at war.[l] God told me to hurry. Stop opposing God, who is with me, or else he will destroy you.”[m] 22 But Josiah did not turn back from him;[n] he disguised himself for battle. He did not take seriously[o] the words of Necho which he had received from God; he went to fight him in the Plain of Megiddo. 23 Archers shot King Josiah; the king ordered his servants, “Take me out of this chariot,[p] for I am seriously wounded.” 24 So his servants took him out of the chariot, put him in another chariot that he owned, and brought him to Jerusalem, where he died. He was buried in the tombs of his ancestors;[q] all the people of Judah and Jerusalem mourned Josiah. 25 Jeremiah composed laments for Josiah which all the male and female singers use to mourn Josiah to this very day. It has become customary in Israel to sing these; they are recorded in the Book of Laments.
26 The rest of the events of Josiah’s reign, including the faithful acts he did in obedience to what is written in the law of the Lord[r] 27 and his accomplishments, from start to finish, are recorded[s] in the Scroll of the Kings of Israel and Judah.
Jehoahaz’s Reign
36 The people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah and made him king in his father’s place in Jerusalem. 2 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. 3 The king of Egypt prevented him from ruling in Jerusalem and imposed on the land a special tax[t] of 100 talents[u] of silver and a talent of gold. 4 The king of Egypt made Jehoahaz’s[v] brother Eliakim king over Judah and Jerusalem, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. Necho seized his brother Jehoahaz and took him to Egypt.
Jehoiakim’s Reign
5 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. He did evil in the sight of[w] the Lord his God. 6 King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon attacked him,[x] bound him with bronze chains, and carried him away[y] to Babylon. 7 Nebuchadnezzar took some of the items in the Lord’s temple to Babylon and put them in his palace[z] there.[aa]
8 The rest of the events of Jehoiakim’s reign, including the horrible sins he committed and his shortcomings, are recorded in the Scroll of the Kings of Israel and Judah.[ab] His son Jehoiachin replaced him as king.
Jehoiachin’s Reign
9 Jehoiachin was eighteen[ac] years old when he became king, and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem. He did evil in the sight of[ad] the Lord. 10 At the beginning of the year King Nebuchadnezzar ordered him to be brought[ae] to Babylon, along with the valuable items in the Lord’s temple. In his place Nebuchadnezzar made Jehoiachin’s relative[af] Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.
Zedekiah’s Reign
11 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he ruled for eleven years in Jerusalem. 12 He did evil in the sight of[ag] the Lord his God. He did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, the Lord’s spokesman. 13 He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him vow allegiance[ah] in the name of God. He was stubborn and obstinate, and refused to return[ai] to the Lord God of Israel. 14 All the leaders of the priests and people became more unfaithful and committed the same horrible sins practiced by the nations.[aj] They defiled the Lord’s temple which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.
The Babylonians Destroy Jerusalem
15 The Lord God of their ancestors[ak] continually warned them through his messengers,[al] for he felt compassion for his people and his dwelling place. 16 But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his warnings,[am] and ridiculed his prophets.[an] Finally the Lord got very angry at his people and there was no one who could prevent his judgment.[ao] 17 He brought against them the king of the Babylonians, who slaughtered[ap] their young men in their temple.[aq] He did not spare[ar] young men or women, or even the old and aging. God[as] handed everyone over to him. 18 He carried away to Babylon all the items in God’s temple, whether large or small, as well as what was in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and in the treasuries of the king and his officials. 19 They burned down God’s temple and tore down the wall of Jerusalem. They burned all its fortified buildings and destroyed all its valuable items. 20 He deported to Babylon all who escaped the sword. They served him and his sons until the Persian kingdom rose to power. 21 This took place to fulfill the Lord’s message spoken through Jeremiah[at] and lasted until the land experienced[au] its sabbatical years.[av] All the time[aw] of its desolation the land rested in order to fulfill the seventy years.[ax]
Cyrus Allows the Exiles to Go Home
22 In the first year[ay] of King Cyrus of Persia, in fulfillment of the Lord’s message spoken through Jeremiah,[az] the Lord motivated[ba] King Cyrus of Persia to issue a proclamation[bb] throughout his kingdom and also to put it in writing. It read:
23 “This is what King Cyrus of Persia says:
‘The Lord God of heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Anyone of his people among you may go up there, and may the Lord his God be with him.”
Salutation
1 From Paul,[a] called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus[b] by the will of God, and Sosthenes, our brother, 2 to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, and called to be saints, with all those in every place who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.[c] 3 Grace and peace to you[d] from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!
Thanksgiving
4 I always thank my God for you because of the grace of God that was given to you in Christ Jesus. 5 For you were made rich[e] in every way in him, in all your speech and in every kind of knowledge[f]— 6 just as the testimony about Christ has been confirmed among you— 7 so that you do not lack any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation[g] of our Lord Jesus Christ. 8 He[h] will also strengthen you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into fellowship with his son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Divisions in the Church
10 I urge you, brothers and sisters,[i] by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to agree together,[j] to end your divisions,[k] and to be united by the same mind and purpose.[l] 11 For members of Chloe’s household have made it clear to me, my brothers and sisters,[m] that there are quarrels[n] among you. 12 Now I mean this, that[o] each of you is saying, “I am with Paul,” or “I am with Apollos,” or “I am with Cephas,”[p] or “I am with Christ.” 13 Is Christ divided? Paul wasn’t crucified for you, was he?[q] Or were you in fact baptized in the name of Paul?[r] 14 I thank God[s] that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name! 16 (I also baptized the household of Stephanus. Otherwise, I do not remember whether I baptized anyone else.) 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—and not with clever speech, so that the cross of Christ would not become useless.[t]
Psalm 27[a]
By David.
27 The Lord is my light[b] and my salvation.
I fear no one.[c]
The Lord protects my life.
I am afraid of no one.[d]
2 When evil men attack me[e]
to devour my flesh,[f]
when my adversaries and enemies attack me,[g]
they stumble and fall.[h]
3 Even when an army is deployed against me,
I do not fear.[i]
Even when war is imminent,[j]
I remain confident.[k]
4 I have asked the Lord for one thing—
this is what I desire!
I want to live[l] in the Lord’s house[m] all the days of my life,
so I can gaze at the splendor[n] of the Lord
and contemplate in his temple.
5 He will surely[o] give me shelter[p] in the day of danger;[q]
he will hide me in his home.[r]
He will place me[s] on an inaccessible rocky summit.[t]
6 Now I will triumph
over my enemies who surround me.[u]
I will offer sacrifices in his dwelling place and shout for joy.[v]
I will sing praises to the Lord.
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