Hezekiya unothama nshingo we Ndzimu
1 Ngono kwakati kose ikoku kwawila, bathu bose be Iziraela bakabe bakakubungana bakapalala bakayenda ku mizi ye Juda ngono bakaswika bepkhwanya phanda dzakabe dzakathang'wa nge mabgwe bakatemelela zwifano zwe ndzimukadzi Ashera. Bakakolomola magalo a pezhugwi ne zwifano mu Juda yose ne Bhenjamini ne mu Ifureimi ne mu Manase. Bakati basinokolomola kose ikoku Baiziraela bakabgwilila ku mizi yabo neku thundu dzabo.
2 Hezekiya wakabiga makupo e bapirisiti ne e Balevi gupo ne gupo limwe ne limwe nge nshingo walo. Mishingo yakabe ili yekupisa zwibhayilo ne kudusa zwibhayilo zwe mbakisano ne kushinga ku mikoba ye Ng'umba ya Yahwe ne kukudza ne kumbila Yahwe. 3 Zwipo zwakadusiwa ndi mambo kudwa mu danga labo zwibhayilo zwinopisiwa zwe mangwanana ne madekwana ne zwibhayilo zwe mazhuba e kunyaluluka a bo Sabata ne zwe Mwedzi ugala zwe mizano yakabigwa ngothubukana kwayo sekwa kwakakwagwa mu nlayo wa Yahwe.
4 Pezhugwi kwa ikoku mambo bakadwa bathu bakabe begala mu Jerusalema kuti bape bapirisiti ne Balevi gobe lakabalingisana kuti ndizo ibo balingisane nge nlayo wa Yahwe koga. 5 Kwakati koga ndaulo isinobe yabhuda, bathu be Iziraela bakadusa zwe kutanga zwe mathunde ne nkumbi we zhambi ne mafuta ne butji gwe nyutji na zose zwabakabe balima, zose izwezwi bakazwidusa nge mimoyo mitjena bedusa zwe bugumi mu tjimwe ne tjimwe tjazo. 6 Bathu be Iziraela ne be Juda bakabe begala mu mizi mikulu ye Juda bakadusa bo zwe bugumi zwe ng'ombe ne pkhwizi ne mbudzi ne zwe bugumi zwe zwithu zwakayengemala zwakapiwa Yahwe Ndzimu wabo, bakazwitiliyanya zwikabe duluthulu. 7 Mu mwedzi we butatu bakatangisa kubutitika zwipo zwabo, bakapedza mu mwedzi we kutendeka 8 Ngono kwakati Hezekiya ne makulukota bazha kuwobona mibumba ye zwipo bakakudza Yahwe kakale bakakombolela bathu babo e Baiziraela. 9 Hezekiya kabhuzwisisa bapirisiti ne Balevi ngekwe mibumba ye zwipo, 10 koga Azariya mpirisiti nkulu wakabe ali we nsha wa Zadoki kadabila mambo eti, “Tjinga kwabakatangisa kuzhisa zwipo ku Ng'umba ya Yahwe toja tikaguta kukasala kunji ngobe Yahwe bakakombolela bathu babo ndizo tinakungapa kwakasala.”
11 Ipapo Hezekiya kabadwa kuti balulwamise ng'umbana dzimu mu Ng'umba ya Yahwe ngono bakadzilulwamisa. 12 Bakazhisa zwipo zwabo ne zwe bugumi ne zwija zwakapiwa Ndzimu bakazwizhisa nge mimoyo mitjena. Konaniya we Nlevi ndiye wakabe akalingisana ne zwithu izwezwi ana nnung'una uwe Shimeyi wakabe entobela nge mamo. 13 Jehiele na Azaziya na Nahati na Asaheli na Jerimoti na Jozabadi na Elieli na Isimakiya na Mahati na Bhenaya bakabe beshinga bali pasi kwa Konaniya na Shimeyi bashalugwa ndi Mambo Hezekiya na Azariya mpirisiti nkulu wakabe akalingisana ne Ng'umba ye Ndzimu. 14 Kore nkololo wa Imina we Nlevi, nlindi we nkoba we ku bhezhuba iye wakabe ali ntungamili muna zwe kuamutjila zwipo zwe moyo ntjena zwadusigwa Ndzimu, kakale ekoba zwipo zwinobe zwakabigigwa Yahwe ne zwipo zwakayengemala kupinda. 15 Edeni na Miniyamini na Jeshuwa na Shemaya na Amariya na Shekaniya bakabe bembhatsha nge moyo nlefu mu mizi mikulu ye bapirisiti kukobela bakanyi kwabo, bekobela bahwola ne batjetjana ngolizana koga kuyenda ngothubukanyiwa kwabo. 16 Kwakabe kusinga baligwe ibabo bakakwalisiwa kuyenda ne njudzi dzabo balume bose be makole anodwa mu butatu kuyenda pezhugwi, bose bakabe bengina mu Ng'umba ya Yahwe koga sekwa kwakabe kushakika mu nshingo we zhuba limwe ne limwe, ngobe uli nshingo wabo kuyenda ne pa banoshinga. 17 Bapirisiti bakabe bakakwalisiwa kuyenda ne misha ya botate babo, Balevi ibo bakabe bekwalisiwa kudwa mu makole ali makumi mabili (20) kene kupinda ibo bakabe bakakwalisiwa kuyenda ne pa banoshinga. 18 Bose bakabe bakakwalisiwa kushangana ne bakadzi babo nenge bana babo na bose babanotjengeta ngobe bakabe begala bezwiyengemadza. 19 Ngono bapirisiti izo zwizekugwana zwa Aroni bakabe begala mu mizi mikulu ne mizana yakapoteleka ne mafulilo ayo kwakabe kuna balume bakalingisana kukoba zojiwa ku bamwe bose be misha ye bupirisiti ne bamwe bose bakabe bakakwalisiwa pasi kwe Balevi.
20 Ikoku kose ndiko kwakathamwa ndi Hezekiya mu Juda yose, ngono wakathama bubuya ne ndulamo ne kugalikabgwe mbeli kwa Yahwe Ndzimu uwe. 21 Nshingo mmwe ne mmwe waakathama we Ng'umba ye Ndzimu kuyendidzana ne nlayo, eshaka Ndzimu uwe, wakathama nge moyo uwe wose ngono kabhudilila.
Hezekiah Reforms Religious Life
1 After the festival ended, all the people of Israel went to every city in Judah and broke the stone pillars, cut down the symbols of the goddess Asherah, and destroyed the altars and the pagan places of worship. They did the same thing throughout the rest of Judah, and the territories of Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh; then they all returned home.
2 King Hezekiah reestablished the organization of the priests and Levites, under which they each had specific duties. These included offering the burnt offerings and the fellowship offerings, taking part in the Temple worship, and giving praise and thanks in the various parts of the Temple. 3 From his own flocks and herds he provided animals for the burnt offerings each morning and evening, and for those offered on the Sabbath, at the New Moon Festival, and at the other festivals which are required by the Law of the Lord.
4 In addition, the king told the people of Jerusalem to bring the offerings to which the priests and the Levites were entitled, so that they could give all their time to the requirements of the Law of the Lord. 5 As soon as the order was given, the people of Israel brought gifts of their finest grain, wine, olive oil, honey, and other farm produce, and they also brought the tithes of everything they had. 6 All the people who lived in the cities of Judah brought tithes of their cattle and sheep, and they also brought large quantities of gifts which they dedicated to the Lord their God. 7 The gifts started arriving in the third month and continued to pile up for the next four months. 8 When King Hezekiah and his officials saw how much had been given, they praised the Lord and praised his people Israel. 9 The king spoke to the priests and the Levites about these gifts, 10 and Azariah the High Priest, a descendant of Zadok, said to him, “Since the people started bringing their gifts to the Temple, there has been enough to eat and a large surplus besides. We have all this because the Lord has blessed his people.”
11 On the king's orders they prepared storerooms in the Temple area 12 and put all the gifts and tithes in them for safekeeping. They placed a Levite named Conaniah in charge and made his brother Shimei his assistant. 13 Ten Levites were assigned to work under them: Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah. All this was done under the authority of King Hezekiah and Azariah the High Priest. 14 Kore son of Imnah, a Levite who was chief guard at the East Gate of the Temple, was in charge of receiving the gifts offered to the Lord and of distributing them. 15 In the other cities where priests lived, he was faithfully assisted in this by other Levites: Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah. They distributed the food equally to their fellow Levites according to what their duties were, 16 and not by clans. They gave a share to all males thirty years of age or older who had daily responsibilities in the Temple in accordance with their positions. 17 The priests were assigned their duties by clans, and the Levites twenty years of age or older were assigned theirs by work groups. 18 They were all registered together with their wives, children, and other dependents, because they were required to be ready to perform their sacred duties at any time. 19 Among the priests who lived in the cities assigned to Aaron's descendants or in the pasture lands belonging to these cities, there were responsible men who distributed the food to all the males in the priestly families and to everyone who was on the rolls of the Levite clans.
20 Throughout all Judah, King Hezekiah did what was right and what was pleasing to the Lord his God. 21 He was successful, because everything he did for the Temple or in observance of the Law, he did in a spirit of complete loyalty and devotion to his God.