of the Book. And the King stood by a Pillar, and made a Covenant before the Lord to walk after the Lord, and to keep his Commandments and Statutes, with all their heart, and all their soul, to perform the words of this Covenant that were written in this Book; and all the People stood to the Covenant.

And the King commanded Hilkiah to bring forth all the vessels for Baal, and for the Grove, and for the Host of Heaven, and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and he carried the ashes of them into Bethel. And he put down the Idolatrous Priests that burned incense to Baal, to the Sun and to the Moon, to the Planets, and to all the Host of Heaven. And he brought out the Image of the Grove, from the House of the Lord unto the Brook Kidron, and burned it there, and stamped it small to powder. And he took away the Horses that the Kings of Judah had given to the Sun, and destroyed Topheth, in the valley of Hinnom, where they made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire to Moloch. And he brake in pieces the Images, and cut down the Groves, and the Altar that was at Bethel, and the High Place, which Jeroboam the sou of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, and stamped it small to powder, and burned the Grove, and took the bones out of the Sepulchres, and burned them upon this Altar.

Then was fulfilled the prophecy made there four hundred and fifty years before, when the Man of God cried unto Jeroboam, at the Altar at Bethel, saying, "Behold a child shall be born unto the House of 'David, Josiah by name, and upon thee shall he offer "the Priests of the High Place, and Men's bones shall "be burned upon thee."

And Josiah saw the Sepulchre of the Man of God,

that uttered this prophecy, and that was slain by the Lion when he was returning on his Ass, for having disobeyed the command of God, and he said, Let him alone, let no man move his bones.

CHAPTER 93.

DEATH OF JOSIAH.

AND King Josiah commanded all the People, saying, Keep the Passover unto the Lord your God. Surely there was not holden such a Passover from the days of the Judges. And like unto him was there no King before him, that turned unto the Lord, with all his heart, and all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.

Notwithstanding the Lord turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had provoked him withal. And the Lord said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this City Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house which I said, My name shall be there.

In his days Pharaoh-nechoh, King of Egypt, went up against the King of Assyria, who dwelt at Babylon, to the River Euphrates; and King Josiah went out against him. But he sent Ambassadors, saying, I come not against thee, thou King of Judah, but against the house wherewith I have war; nevertheless, Josiah would not turn his face from him, but disguised himself that he might fight with him, in which he was guilty of tempting God, and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.And the archers shot at King Josiah, and he said, Have

me away, for I am sore wounded, and his servants brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there, and was buried in the Sepulchres of his fathers, and all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah. And Jehoahaz, his son, reigned in his stead.

And Jehoahaz reigned only three months, for Pharaoh returning from Babylom took him, and carried him captive into Egypt, and made Eliakim, son of Josiah, King, and turned his name to Jehoiakim. And Jehoiakim gave silver and gold to Pharaoh, and taxed the Land to give the money. And he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem, and did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done.

CHAPTER 94.

THE BEGINNING OF THE CAPTIVITY,-IN THE YEAR BEFORE CHRIST 606.

IN the days of Jehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, came up against Jerusalem, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years. This was one hundred and fifteen years after the destruction of the Kingdom of Israel, and SIX HUNDRED AND SIX years before the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, and is THE BE GINNING OF THE CAPTIVITY OF JUDAH.

And in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, came this word unto Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Take thee a roll of a book and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel and against Judah. It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them, that they may return from their evil way, and I may forgive their sin. Then Jeremiah called Baruch, and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the Lord, in the roll

of a book, and Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, am shut up, for he was in prison, I cannot go into the bouse of the Lord, therefore go thou and read in the roll the words of the Lord, in the ears of all the People. And these are the words, that Jeremiah spoke unto Baruch. The Lord said, Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up, even THIS WHOLE LAND.

And in the fifth year of Jehoiakim they proclaimed a fast, to all the People in Jerusalem; then read Baruch in the book, the words of Jeremiah, in the house of the Lord; and Micaiah went down to the Princes in the King's house, and told them, and the Princes sent for Baruch, and he read the words to them, and they were afraid, and took the roll and laid it up, and told Baruch to hide himself. But the King fetched the roll, and Jehudi read it in the ears of the King. Now the King sat in the winter-house, in the ninth month, and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him. And when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with a penknife, and cast it into the fire, until all the roll was consumed. And the King or the Princes were not afraid, and the King commanded to take Baruch and Jeremiah, but the Lord hid them. Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, Take thee another roll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll, and say, Thus saith the Lord to Jehoiakim, he shall have none to sit on the Throne of David, and I will punish him and his servants for their iniquity, and will bring upon the Men of Judah all the evil that I pronounced against them, yet they hearkened not.

And Jehoiakim died, and Jehoiachin, his son, reigned in his stead. And when Jehoiachin had reign-.......

ed three months, and had done that which was evil in the sight of the Lord; Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, came against the City, and his servants did besiege it, and took it. And he carried out thence the treasures of the House of the Lord, and the treasures of the King's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon had made. And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the Princes, and all the mighty Men of Valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the Craftsmen and Smiths; none remained save the poorest sort of the People of the Land. And he、 carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and his Wives and his Officers, and the Mighty of the Land. And the King of Babylon made Mattaniah, his father's brother, King in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah, and he reigned eleven years.

CHAPTER 95.

THE COMPLETION OF THE CAPTIVITY, AND
DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE.

AND Zedekiah did evil in the sight of the Lord, and hearkened not to the warnings of the Prophet Jeremiab, and he rebelled against the King of Babylon.

And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign,' (in the year before Christ 590,) that Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon came, he and all his Host against Jeru salem, and pitched against it, and built forts against it. And the City was besieged two years. And the famine prevailed in the City, and there was no Bread for the People.

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Then came the word of the Lord to the Prophet Jeremiah, saying, Go tell Zedekiah, Behold I will give this City into the hand of the King of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire. And thou shalt not escape out