“Go up to Hilkiah the high priest and have him melt down the silver that has been brought by the people to the Lord’s temple and has been collected by the guards at the door.

Yet the Lord’s great anger against Judah did not subside; he was still infuriated by all the things Manasseh had done.

He burned down the Lord’s temple, the royal palace, and all the houses in Jerusalem, including every large house.

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.

Each day men came to help David until his army became very large.

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.

The people were delighted with their donations, for they contributed to the Lord with a willing attitude; King David was also very happy.

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.

Now give me wisdom and discernment so I can effectively lead this nation. Otherwise no one is able to make judicial decisions for this great nation of yours.”

He paneled the main hall with boards made from evergreen trees and plated it with fine gold, decorated with palm trees and chains.

Anyone who would not seek the Lord God of Israel would be executed, whether they were young or old, male or female.

Then some Levites, from the Kohathites and Korahites, got up and loudly praised the Lord God of Israel.

There was a great celebration in Jerusalem, unlike anything that had occurred in Jerusalem since the time of King Solomon son of David of Israel.

In the cities of the priests, Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah faithfully assisted him in making disbursements to their fellow priests according to their divisions, regardless of age.

They called out loudly in the Judahite dialect to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, trying to scare and terrify them so they could seize the city.

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.

People were unable to tell the difference between the sound of joyous shouting and the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people were shouting so loudly that the sound was heard a long way off.

“Everything that has happened to us has come about because of our wicked actions and our great guilt. Even so, our God, you have exercised restraint toward our iniquities and have given us a remnant such as this.

They said to me, “The remnant that remains from the exile there in the province are experiencing considerable adversity and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem lies breached, and its gates have been burned down!”

Then I said, “Please, O LORD God of heaven, great and awesome God, who keeps his loving covenant with those who love him and obey his commandments,