Josiya unozana Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi
(2 Bomambo 23:21-23)1 Mambo Josiya kalondolodzela Yahwe Nzano we Kupinda pezhugwi mu Jerusalema, bakabhaya phkwizana dze Nzano we Kupinda pezhugwi mu zhuba le bugumi lina manna (14) le mwedzi we kutanga. 2 Wakakobela bapirisiti mishingo ngono kabakulumbidza mu nshingo we Ng'umba ya Yahwe. 3 Ngono wakadwa Balevi bose ibo bakabe bediya Baiziraela, ibo bakabe bakayengemala kuna Yahwe kati, “Mubige Bhokisi le Tjidumano mu Ng'umba ye Ndzimu yakabakwa ndi Solomoni nkololo wa Dafite. Musitongotja lisenga nge mathudzi enyu koga shingilani Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu ne bathu bawo Baiziraela. 4 Muzwilulwamise kuyenda nge misha ne kuyenda nge mishingo yamakakobegwa ndi Mambo Dafite ne nkololo uwe Mambo Solomoni. 5 Mume mu Bugalo gwakayengemala nge makupo e misha e bakanyi kwenyu, bathu koga, ngono nkoba mmwe ne mmwe kume Balevi be nsha nng'ompela. 6 Mubhaye pkhwizana ye Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi namwi muzwitjenapadze ngono mululwamisile bakanyi kwenyu pkhwizana, muthama itjo Yahwe tjabakadwa Mushe kuti tjithamiwe.”
7 Ngono Mambo Josiya kapa bathu kudwa mu ngubi iye, pkhwizana ne mbudzana dze Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi dzili zwiwulu zwili makumi matatu (30 000) ne mikono ili zwiwulu zwili zwitatu (3 000). 8 Makulukota awe naiwo kadusila bathu be bapirisiti ne Balevi. Hilikiya na Zakhariya na Jehiele bayendisi be Ng'umba ye Ndzimu bakapa bapirisiti zwiwulu zwili zwibili ne mazana ali tathatu (2 600) e zwibhayilo zwe pkhwizana ne mbudzana zwe Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi ne mazana matatu (300) e ng'ombe. 9 Konaniya ne banung'una babe Shemaya na Nethanele na Hashabiya na Jeyele na Jozabadi batungamili be Balevi bakadusa zwipo zwe Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi zwili zwiwulu zwili zwishanu (5 000) ne mikono ili mazana mashanu (500) bakazwipa Balevi.
10 Ngono kwakati tjimwe ne tjimwe tje Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi tjalulwamisiwa bapirisiti ne Balevi bakatola magalo koga mambo sekwa bakalaula. 11 Ngono bakabhaya pkhwizana dze Nzano we Kupinda pezhugwi ngono bapirisiti bakan'nyasa malopa abakabe bepiwa, Balevi ibo beviya phuka dzabhayiwa. 12 Bakabigila ntome zwibhayilo zwinopisiwa kuti ndizo bazwikobe nge makupo e misha ye bathu koga kuti ndizo badusilabo Yahwe koga sekwa kwakakwagwa mu lukwalo gwe nlayo wa Mushe. Bakathama saikoku bo ne zwikondolo. 13 Balevi bakagotja zwibhayilo zwe Nzano we Kupinda pezhugwi mu moto koga sekwa kwakakwagwa ngono bakakapayidza zwipo zwakayengemala mu hali ngothubukana kwadzo ngono bakakobela bathu bose tjinyolotjo. 14 Shule kwa ikoku, Balevi bakalulwamisa nyama yabo neye bapirisiti ibo zwizekugwana zwa Aroni ngoti bapirisiti bakabe basina gwe kugala, bakabe bepisa zwibhayilo zwakabe zwipisiwa zose ne zwibhayilo zwe mafuta kudzina kukabe busiku. 15 Ngono bambi ibo bakabe bali Balevi be nsha wa Asafa bakabe bali mu magalo abo Mambo Dafite sekwa akabe aleba, ibo bakabe bali bo Asafa na Hemani na Jeduthuni iye ali nlebesambeli wa mambo. Balisi be mikoba ibo akuzobe kusheteka kuti bangasiya mikoba ngoti Balevi bakabalulwamisila. 16 Ndizo nshingo wose wa Yahwe wakalulwamisiwa zhuba ilelo, kulondolodza Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi, Mambo Josiya sekwa akabe aleba. 17 Baiziraela bakabe balipo bakalondolodza Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi nge tjibaka itjetjo bakalondolodza ne Nzano we Tjiwunga tjisina Mbidzo kwe mazhuba ali kutendeka. 18 Akuzotongofa kwabe ne Nzano we Kupinda Pezhugwi wakanga iwoyu mu Iziraela tjinga kwe mazhuba a Samuele nlebesambeli, akuna wa bomambo be Baiziraela wakatongolondolodza Nzano we Kupinda pezhugwi iwoyu nge zila inonga yakathamiwa ndi Josiya ne bapirisiti ne Balevi ne Juda yose ne Baiziraela bakabe balipo ne bagali be Jerusalema. 19 Mu gole le bugumi lina zhanakadzi (18) le mbuso wa Josiya, Nzano we Kupinda pezhugwi wakalondolodziwa.
Bhelelo le mbuso wa Josiya
(2 Bomambo 23:28-30)20 Shule kwe kuti Josiya abe athama zose izwezwi zwe Ng'umba ye Ndzimu, Neko mambo we Egipiti kabhuda kanogwa ku Karikhemishi ku gwizi gwe Yufuratesi. Ngono Mambo Josiya kayenda kunonshanganidza. 21 Koga Neko katumila batumwa kunli ne matama anoti, “Dumbu unotshwa ubhulani mu ngwa iyeyi Mambo we Juda kene? Andizozha kuwogwa nawe ndazha kuwogwa ne wandinogwa naye. Ndzimu wandibudza kuti nditjimbidze, ndizo letjedza kunyanyayidzana ne Ndzimu, iwo unami kusakajalo unokulobesa.” 22 Koga Josiya kabe akazwimisila kugwa, kalamba teedza matama a Neko akabe edwa ku Ndzimu ngono Josiya kanogwa na Neko ku tjibata tje Megido.
23 Josiya kabhayiwa nge misebe ye Baegipiti. Ngono kadwa balanda babe kati, “Mundiduse ipapa ngobe ndakubala zwakabipa.” 24 Ndizo balanda babe bakan'dusa mu koloyi iye ye ngwa ngono bakantathisa imwe ipoga bakan'yisa ku Jerusalema. Wakanofila ikoko ngono kanobiganyiwa ku zwikumbu zwa botate babe. Ngono bathu bose be Juda ne Jerusalema bakan'lilila.
25 Nlebesambeli Jeremiya kakwala lumbo gwe tjililo gwa Mambo Josiya. Kwakabe kwakawolobeleka mu Iziraela kuti bambi ne balume ne bakadzi bambe lumbo igogu abe nlilila. Lumbo igogu gowang'wa mu hwalo dze Zwililo.
26 Tjimwe ne tjimwe tjakathamwa ndi Josiya, kuzwimisila kukwe muna Yahwe ne kulondolodza nlayo kukwe, 27 ne thawu dzidze kudwa mu kutangisa kunoti ku bupelo kwakakwagwa mu Thawu dza Bomambo be Iziraela ne Juda.
Passover Is Celebrated
(2 Kings 23.21-23)1 Josiah commanded that Passover be celebrated in Jerusalem to honor the Lord. So, on the fourteenth day of the first month, the lambs were killed for the Passover celebration.
2 On that day, Josiah made sure the priests knew what duties they were to do in the temple. 3 He called together the Levites who served the Lord and who taught the people his laws, and he said:
No longer will you have to carry the sacred chest from place to place. It will stay in the temple built by King Solomon son of David, where you will serve the Lord and his people Israel. 4 Get ready to do the work that David and Solomon assigned to you, according to your clans. 5 Divide yourselves into groups, then arrange yourselves throughout the temple so that each family of worshipers will be able to get help from one of you. 6 When the people bring you their Passover lamb, you must kill it and prepare it to be sacrificed to the Lord. Make sure the people celebrate according to the instructions that the Lord gave Moses, and don't do anything to make yourselves unclean and unacceptable.
7 Josiah donated 30,000 sheep and goats, and 3,000 bulls from his own flocks and herds for the people to offer as sacrifices. 8 Josiah's officials also voluntarily gave some of their animals to the people, the priests, and the Levites as sacrifices. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, who were the officials in charge of the temple, gave the priests 2,600 sheep and lambs and 300 bulls to sacrifice during the Passover celebration. 9 Conaniah, his two brothers Shemaiah and Nethanel, as well as Hashabiah, Jeiel, and Jozabad were leaders of the Levites, and they gave the other Levites 5,000 sheep and goats, and 500 bulls to offer as sacrifices.
10 When everything was ready to celebrate Passover, the priests and the Levites stood where Josiah had told them. 11 Then the Levites killed and skinned the Passover lambs, and they handed some of the blood to the priests, who splattered it on the altar. 12 The Levites set aside the parts of the animal that the worshipers needed for their sacrifices to please the Lord, just as the Law of Moses required. They also did the same thing with the bulls. 13 They sacrificed the Passover animals on the altar and boiled the meat for the other offerings in pots, kettles, and pans. Then they quickly handed the meat to the people so they could eat it.
14 All day long, the priests were busy offering sacrifices and burning the animals' fat on the altar. And when everyone had finished, the Levites prepared Passover animals for themselves and for the priests.
15 During the celebration some of the Levites prepared Passover animals for the musicians and the guards, so that the Levite musicians would not have to leave their places, which had been assigned to them according to the instructions of David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun the king's prophet. Even the guards at the temple gates did not have to leave their posts.
16 So on that day, Passover was celebrated to honor the Lord, and sacrifices were offered on the altar to him, just as Josiah had commanded. 17 The worshipers then celebrated the Festival of Thin Bread for the next seven days.
18 People from Jerusalem and from towns all over Judah and Israel were there. Passover had not been observed like this since the days of Samuel the prophet. In fact, this was the greatest Passover celebration in Israel's history! 19 All these things happened in the eighteenth year of Josiah's rule in Judah.
Josiah Dies in Battle
(2 Kings 23.28-30)20 Some time later, King Neco of Egypt led his army to the city of Carchemish on the Euphrates River. And Josiah led his troops north to meet the Egyptians in battle.
21 Neco sent the following message to Josiah:
I'm not attacking you, king of Judah! We're not even at war. But God has told me to quickly attack my enemy. God is on my side, so if you try to stop me, he will punish you.
22 But Josiah ignored Neco's warning, even though it came from God! Instead, he disguised himself and marched into battle against Neco in the valley near Megiddo.
23 During the battle an Egyptian soldier shot Josiah with an arrow. Josiah told his servants, “Get me out of here! I've been hit.” 24 They carried Josiah out of his chariot, then put him in the other chariot he had there and took him back to Jerusalem, where he soon died. He was buried beside his ancestors, and everyone in Judah and Jerusalem mourned his death.
25 Jeremiah the prophet wrote a funeral song in honor of Josiah. And since then, anyone in Judah who mourns the death of Josiah sings that song. It is included in the collection of funeral songs.
26 Everything else Josiah did while he was king, including how he faithfully obeyed the Lord, 27 is written in The History of the Kings of Israel and Judah.