He was buried in his tomb in the garden of Uzzah, and his son Josiah replaced him as king.

The king tore down the altars the kings of Judah had set up on the roof of Ahaz's upper room, as well as the altars Manasseh had set up in the two courtyards of the Lord's temple. He crushed them up and threw the dust in the Kidron Valley.

The king said, "Leave it alone! No one must touch his bones." So they left his bones undisturbed, as well as the bones of the Israelite prophet buried beside him.

The king ordered all the people, "Observe the Passover of the Lord your God, as prescribed in this scroll of the covenant."

No king before or after repented before the Lord as he did, with his whole heart, soul, and being in accordance with the whole law of Moses.

The Lord announced, "I will also spurn Judah, just as I spurned Israel. I will reject this city that I chose -- both Jerusalem and the temple, about which I said, "I will live there."

He did evil in the sight of the Lord as his ancestors had done.

He did evil in the sight of the Lord as his ancestors had done.

The Lord sent against him Babylonian, Syrian, Moabite, and Ammonite raiding bands; he sent them to destroy Judah, as he had warned he would do through his servants the prophets.

Just as the Lord had announced, he rejected Judah because of all the sins which Manasseh had committed.

He passed away and his son Jehoiachin replaced him as king.

He did evil in the sight of the Lord as his ancestors had done.

Nebuchadnezzar took from there all the riches in the treasuries of the Lord's temple and of the royal palace. He removed all the gold items which King Solomon of Israel had made for the Lord's temple, just as the Lord had warned.

The king of Babylon deported to Babylon all the soldiers (there were 7,000), as well as 1,000 craftsmen and metal workers. This included all the best warriors.

He did evil in the sight of the Lord, as Jehoiakim had done.

The Babylonians broke the two bronze pillars in the Lord's temple, as well as the movable stands and the big bronze basin called the "The Sea." They took the bronze to Babylon.

Now King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, as governor over the people whom he allowed to remain in the land of Judah.

Gedaliah took an oath so as to give them and their troops some assurance of safety. He said, "You don't need to be afraid to submit to the Babylonian officials. Settle down in the land and submit to the king of Babylon. Then things will go well for you."

But in the seventh month Ishmael son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family, came with ten of his men and murdered Gedaliah, as well as the Judeans and Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah.

Then all the people, from the youngest to the oldest, as well as the army officers, left for Egypt, because they were afraid of what the Babylonians might do.

Cush was the father of Nimrod, who established himself as a mighty warrior on earth.

as well as the Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites,

Caleb son of Hezron fathered sons by his wife Azubah (also known as Jerioth). Her sons were Jesher, Shobab, and Ardon.

Sheshan gave his daughter to his servant Jarha as a wife; she bore him Attai.

Solomon's son was Rehoboam, followed by Abijah his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son,

Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters. But his brothers did not have many sons, so their whole clan was not as numerous as the sons of Judah.

They also lived in all the settlements that surrounded these towns as far as Baal. These were their settlements; they kept genealogical records.

The men whose names are listed came during the time of King Hezekiah of Judah and attacked the Hamites' settlements, as well as the Meunites they discovered there, and they wiped them out to this very day. They dispossessed them, for they found pasture for their sheep there.

The sons of Reuben, Israel's firstborn -- (Now he was the firstborn, but when he defiled his father's bed, his rights as firstborn were given to the sons of Joseph, Israel's son. So Reuben is not listed as firstborn in the genealogical records.

His brothers by their clans, as listed in their genealogical records: The leader Jeiel, Zechariah,

and Bela son of Azaz, son of Shema, son of Joel. They lived in Aroer as far as Nebo and Baal Meon.

In the east they settled as far as the entrance to the desert that stretches to the Euphrates River, for their cattle had increased in numbers in the land of Gilead.

The descendants of Gad lived near them in the land of Bashan, as far as Salecah.

The half-tribe of Manasseh settled in the land from Bashan as far as Baal Hermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon. They grew in number.

Johanan was the father of Azariah, who served as a priest in the temple Solomon built in Jerusalem.

But Aaron and his descendants offered sacrifices on the altar for burnt offerings and on the altar for incense as they had been assigned to do in the most holy sanctuary. They made atonement for Israel, just as God's servant Moses had ordered.

They were allotted Hebron in the territory of Judah, as well as its surrounding pasturelands.

The descendants of Aaron were also allotted as cities of refuge Hebron, Libnah and its pasturelands, Jattir, Eshtemoa and its pasturelands,

They were allotted as cities of refuge Shechem and its pasturelands (in the hill country of Ephraim), Gezer and its pasturelands,

His daughter was Sheerah, who built Lower and Upper Beth Horon, as well as Uzzen Sheerah),

Their property and settlements included Bethel and its surrounding towns, Naaran to the east, Gezer and its surrounding towns to the west, and Shechem and its surrounding towns as far as Ayyah and its surrounding towns.

All these were the descendants of Asher. They were the leaders of their families, the most capable men, who were warriors and served as head chiefs. There were 26,000 warriors listed in their genealogical records as capable of doing battle.

The sons of Elpaal: Eber, Misham, Shemed (who built Ono and Lod, as well as its surrounding towns),

Obadiah son of Shemaiah, son of Galal, son of Jeduthun; and Berechiah son of Asa, son of Elkanah, who lived among the settlements of the Netophathites.

Some of them were in charge of the equipment and articles of the sanctuary, as well as the flour, wine, olive oil, incense, and spices.

These were the family leaders of the Levites, as listed in their genealogical records. They lived in Jerusalem.

When all the leaders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, David made an agreement with them in Hebron before the Lord. They anointed David king over Israel, just as the Lord had announced through Samuel.

So the three elite warriors broke through the Philistine forces and drew some water from the cistern in Bethlehem near the city gate. They carried it back to David, but David refused to drink it. He poured it out as a drink offering to the Lord

He even killed an Egyptian who was seven and a half feet tall. The Egyptian had a spear as big as the crossbeam of a weaver's loom; Benaiah attacked him with a club. He grabbed the spear out of the Egyptian's hand and killed him with his own spear.

Some of the Gadites joined David at the stronghold in the desert. They were warriors who were trained for battle; they carried shields and spears. They were as fierce as lions and could run as quickly as gazelles across the hills.

Also their neighbors, from as far away as Issachar, Zebulun, and Naphtali, were bringing food on donkeys, camels, mules, and oxen. There were large supplies of flour, fig cakes, raisins, wine, olive oil, beef, and lamb, for Israel was celebrating.

David realized that the Lord had established him as king over Israel and that he had elevated his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel.

So they marched against Baal Perazim and David defeated them there. David said, "Using me as his instrument, God has burst out against my enemies like water bursts out." So that place is called Baal Perazim.

David did just as God commanded him, and they struck down the Philistine army from Gibeon to Gezer.

The first time you did not carry it; that is why the Lord God attacked us, because we did not ask him about the proper way to carry it."

The descendants of Levi carried the ark of God on their shoulders with poles, just as Moses had ordered according to the divine command.

David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint some of their relatives as musicians; they were to play various instruments, including stringed instruments and cymbals, and to sing loudly and joyfully.

Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah were to play the lyres according to the sheminith style, as led by the director;

David was wrapped in a linen robe, as were all the Levites carrying the ark, the musicians, and Kenaniah the supervisor of transport and the musicians; David also wore a linen ephod.

As the ark of the Lord's covenant entered the City of David, Michal, Saul's daughter, looked out the window. When she saw King David jumping and celebrating, she despised him.

He gave it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as a lasting promise,

saying, "To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion of your inheritance."

"So now, say this to my servant David: 'This is what the Lord who commands armies says: "I took you from the pasture and from your work as a shepherd to make you a leader of my people Israel.

I was with you wherever you went and I defeated all your enemies before you. Now I will make you as famous as the great men of the earth.

I will establish a place for my people Israel and settle them there; they will live there and not be disturbed anymore. Violent men will not oppress them again, as they did in the beginning

I will become his father and he will become my son. I will never withhold my loyal love from him, as I withheld it from the one who ruled before you.

So now, O Lord, may the promise you made about your servant and his family become a permanent reality! Do as you promised,

so it may become a reality and you may gain lasting fame, as people say, 'The Lord who commands armies is the God of Israel.' David's dynasty will be established before you,

David defeated King Hadadezer of Zobah as far as Hamath, when he went to extend his authority to the Euphrates River.

There was another battle with the Philistines in which Elhanan son of Jair the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite, whose spear had a shaft as big as the crossbeam of a weaver's loom.

God sent an angel to ravage Jerusalem. As he was doing so, the Lord watched and relented from his judgment. He told the angel who was destroying, "That's enough! Stop now!" Now the Lord's angel was standing near the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

David said to God, "Was I not the one who decided to number the army? I am the one who sinned and committed this awful deed! As for these sheep -- what have they done? O Lord my God, attack me and my family, but remove the plague from your people!"

So David went up as Gad instructed him to do in the name of the Lord.

"Now, my son, may the Lord be with you! May you succeed and build a temple for the Lord your God, just as he announced you would.

Now, look, I have made every effort to supply what is needed to build the Lord's temple. I have stored up 100,000 talents of gold, 1,000,000 talents of silver, and so much bronze and iron it cannot be weighed, as well as wood and stones. Feel free to add more!

These were the descendants of Levi according to their families, that is, the leaders of families as counted and individually listed who carried out assigned tasks in the Lord's temple and were twenty years old and up.

The divisions of Aaron's descendants were as follows: The sons of Aaron: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

Nadab and Abihu died before their father did; they had no sons. Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests.

This was the order in which they carried out their assigned responsibilities when they entered the Lord's temple, according to the regulations given them by their ancestor Aaron, just as the Lord God of Israel had instructed him.

David and the army officers selected some of the sons of Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun to prophesy as they played stringed instruments and cymbals. The following men were assigned this responsibility:

From the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah -- six in all, under supervision of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied as he played a harp, giving thanks and praise to the Lord.

All of these were under the supervision of their fathers; they were musicians in the Lord's temple, playing cymbals and stringed instruments as they served in God's temple. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the supervision of the king.

They cast lots to determine their responsibilities -- oldest as well as youngest, teacher as well as student.

These divisions of the gatekeepers, corresponding to their leaders, had assigned responsibilities, like their relatives, as they served in the Lord's temple.

As for the Amramites, Izharites, Hebronites, and Uzzielites:

As for the Izharites: Kenaniah and his sons were given responsibilities outside the temple as officers and judges over Israel.

As for the Hebronites: Hashabiah and his relatives, 1,700 respected men, were assigned responsibilities in Israel west of the Jordan; they did the Lord's work and the king's service.

As for the Hebronites: Jeriah was the leader of the Hebronites according to the genealogical records. In the fortieth year of David's reign, they examined the records and discovered there were highly respected men in Jazer in Gilead.

What follows is a list of Israelite family leaders and commanders of units of a thousand and a hundred, as well as their officers who served the king in various matters. Each division was assigned to serve for one month during the year; each consisted of 24,000 men.

David did not count the males twenty years old and under, for the Lord had promised to make Israel as numerous as the stars in the sky.

King David rose to his feet and said: "Listen to me, my brothers and my people. I wanted to build a temple where the ark of the Lord's covenant could be placed as a footstool for our God. I have made the preparations for building it.

The Lord God of Israel chose me out of my father's entire family to become king over Israel and have a permanent dynasty. Indeed, he chose Judah as leader, and my father's family within Judah, and then he picked me out from among my father's sons and made me king over all Israel.

I will establish his kingdom permanently, if he remains committed to obeying my commands and regulations, as you are doing this day.'

So now, in the sight of all Israel, the Lord's assembly, and in the hearing of our God, I say this: Carefully observe all the commands of the Lord your God, so that you may possess this good land and may leave it as a permanent inheritance for your children after you.

Realize now that the Lord has chosen you to build a temple as his sanctuary. Be strong and do it!"

David said, "All of this I put in writing as the Lord directed me and gave me insight regarding the details of the blueprints."

So I have made every effort to provide what is needed for the temple of my God, including the gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, as well as a large amount of onyx, settings of antimony and other stones, all kinds of precious stones, and alabaster.

O Lord, you are great, mighty, majestic, magnificent, glorious, and sovereign over all the sky and earth! You have dominion and exalt yourself as the ruler of all.

I know, my God, that you examine thoughts and are pleased with integrity. With pure motives I contribute all this; and now I look with joy as your people who have gathered here contribute to you.

They held a feast before the Lord that day and celebrated. Then they designated Solomon, David's son, as king a second time; before the Lord they anointed him as ruler and Zadok as priest.