also took courage and rebuilt all the wall which had been demolished, and the towers, and another outwork, and strengthened the fortifications, of the city of David, and provided many 6 arms, and appointed military officers over the people; and having assembled them before him in the street of the valley 7 gate, he spoke affectionately to them, and said, Take courage and behave like men, and be not terrified nor dismayed, because of the king of Assur, and because of all the multitude with him; 8 for there are more with us than with him. With him are arms

of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God to save, and to fight our battle. So the people were encouraged by the words of Eze9 kias king of Juda. After this Sennacherim, king of the Assyrians, sent his servants against Jerusalem. While he himself with his main army lay before Lachis, he sent to Ezekias king of Ju10 da and to all the Jews in Jerusalem saying, Thus saith Senna

cherim king of the Assyrians, On what do you rely, that you 11 stand a siege in Jerusalem? Doth not Ezekias deceive you, that he may deliver you up to death, and to famine, and to thirst by saying, The Lord our God will save us out of the hand of 12 the king of Assur? Hath not this same Ezekias demolished his

altars, and his high places, and given orders to Juda, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, You shall worship before 13 this altar, and upon it you shall burn incense? Will you not consider what I and my fathers have done to all the tribes of these regions? Have the gods of the nations of all this land, 14 been able to save their people out of my hand? Who is this of yours among all the gods of these nations which my father destroyed, who were not able to save their people out of my hand, that he should be able to save you out of my 15 hand? Now therefore let not Ezekias deceive you, nor cause you to trust in this manner. Do not believe him. For as there is no god of any nation or kingdom who is able to save his people out of my hand, or hath been able to save out of the hand of my fathers, therefore your God cannot save you out of 16 my hand. And besides what his servants spoke against the

Lord God, and against his servant Ezekias, he wrote a letter 17 to reproach the Lord God of Israel, and spoke of him saying,

As the gods of the nations of the earth have not delivered their peoples out of my hand, so neither can the God of Eze-

18 kias deliver his people out of my hand. Moreover he cried with a loud voice, in the Jewish language to the people of Jerusalem, who were on the walls that he would assist them, in 19 order to induce them to seize the city. And he spoke against

the God of Jerusalem, as against the gods of the peoples of 20 the earth, which are the works of men's hands. But when

Ezekias the king, and Esaias son of Amos the prophet ad21 dressed a prayer concerning these things, and cried to heaven, the Lord sent an angel who destroyed every mighty man, and warrior, including chief and general, in the camp of the king of Assur. So he returned with shame to his own land, and went to the house of his god, and some of them who sprang 22 from his loins slew him with the sword. And when the Lord

had saved Ezekias, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of the hands of Sennacherim, king of Assur, and out of the hand 23 of all men, and had given them rest all around, many brought gifts for the Lord to Jerusalem, and presents to Ezekias king of Juda. And he was thenceforth magnified in the eyes of all the nations.

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In those days Ezekias was sick unto death, and he prayed to the Lord, who hearkened to him and gave him a sign. But Ezekias did not make a suitable return for the favour conferred on him, but his heart was lifted up, so there was wrath against him, and against Juda and Jerusalem. Thereupon Ezekias humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so the wrath of the Lord did not come upon them, during the days of Ezekias.

Now Ezekias had riches and exceeding great glory, and he amassed for himself treasures of silver and gold and precious stones; and he had store houses for spiceries, and places 28 for depositing arms and costly utensils; and cities for storing 29 corn, wine, and oil; and towns and stalls for all sorts of cattle;

and cots for his flocks; and cities which he built for himself; and a vast multitude of flocks and herds; for the Lord gave 30 him substance in great abundance. It was Ezekias who stopped up the upper course of the waters of Geion, and directed them under ground to the south west of the city of David. 31 And he was prospered in all his works. But in his transactions with the ambassadors from the chiefs of Babylon, who were

sent to him to make inquiry touching the miracle which had been done in the land, the Lord left him to himself in order to 32 try him, to know all that were in his heart. Now the rest of

the acts of Ezekias and his goodness, behold they are written in the prophesy of the prophet Esaias son of Amos, and in the 33 book of the kings of Juda and Israel. When Ezekias slept with his fathers they buried him in the uppermost of the tombs

of the sons of David, and all Juda and the inhabitants of Jerusalem paid him distinguished honours at his death: and Manasses his son reigned in his stead. XXXIII. Manasses was twelve years old when he began to 2 reign, and he reigned fifty five years in Jerusalem, and did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all the abominable acts of the nations which the Lord had rooted out from before the - 3 children of Israel. He restored and rebuilt the high places which his father Ezekias had demolished, and erected pillars to the Baalims, and made arbours, and worshipped the whole host of 4 heaven and served them. Nay, he built altars in the house of the Lord, respecting which the Lord had said, In Jerusalem 5 my name shall be forever-he built altars for the whole host 6 of heaven, in the two courts of the house of the Lord. And he made his children pass through fire in the land of Benennom. And he consulted omens and auguries, and used enchantments and encouraged belly speakers and sorcerers, and multiplied the ways of doing evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him 7 to wrath. He actually set up the graven and molten image which he had made, in the house of God, of which God had said to David, and to Solomon his son, In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, 8 I will put my name forever, and I will no more remove the foot of Israel from the land which I have given to their fathers, provided they be watchful to perform all that I have commanded them, according to all the law and the statutes and the judg 9 ments, by the hand of Moses. Now when Manasses had caused Juda and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to go astray, and to do evil beyond all the nations which the Lord had destroyed from 10 before the children of Israel; and the Lord had spoken against Manasses and against his people, but they hearkened not, the Lord brought against them the chiefs of the army of the king

of Asur, and they took Manasses, and having bound him with 12 chains and fetters they carried him to Babylon. And when he

was afflicted he sought the favour of the Lord his God, and humbled himself exceedingly before the God of his fathers, 13 and prayed to him, and he hearkened to him and heard his cry, and brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom. So Manasses knew that the Lord himself is God.

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Now after these things he built a wall without the city of David, from the south west, fronting the south in the valley and along the street leading from the fish gate round to Opel, and raised it very high, and appointed military officers in all 15 the walled cities of Juda. And he removed the strange gods and the graven image out of the house of the Lord, and all the altars which he had built on the mount of the house of the 16 Lord, and in Jerusalem, and without the city. And having repaired the altar of the Lord he offered thereon a sacrifice of thanksgiving and praise, and ordered Juda to serve the Lord 17 God of Israel. But still the people sacrificed on the high places, 18 but it was to the Lord their God. Now the rest of the acts of Manasses, and his prayer to God, and the words of the seers 19 who spoke to him in the name of the God of Israel; and how God hearkened to him at the words of his prayer; and all his sins and his apostasies; and the places on which he built mounts and erected bowers, and graven images before his conversion— 20 behold they are written among the words of the seers. And when Manasses slept with his fathers they buried him in the garden of his house, and Amon his son reigned in his stead. 21 Amon was twenty two years old when he began to reign, 22 and he reigned two years in Jerusalem, and did evil in the sight

of the Lord as his father Manasses had done. For to all the idols which his father Manasses had made Amon burned in23 cense, and served them, and did not humble himself before the

Lord as Manasses his father had humbled himself. Because his 24 son Amon multiplied transgression, therefore his servants rose upon him, and smote him in his house. And when the people of the country had slain those who conspired against king Amon, the people of the country made Josias his son king in his stead.

XXXIV. Josias was eight years old when he began to reign,

2 and he reigned thirty one years in Jerusalem, and did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of David his father, without turning to the right or to the left. 3 In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still a youth, he began to seek the Lord the God of his father David. And in the twelfth year of his reign, he began to cleanse Juda and Jerusalem, from the high places and the bowers, and from their 4 processions around altars, and from the molten images. And having caused to be torn down in his presence, the altars of the Baalims, and the high things which were on them, he cut down the bowers, and broke in pieces the graven and the molten images. And having beaten them to dust, he strewed 5 it over the graves of them who had sacrificed to them, and 6 burned the bones of the priests on the altars. And when he had cleansed Juda and Jerusalem, he proceeded on through the cities of Manasses, and Ephraim, and. Symeon, and Nephthaleim, and the places around them, and tore down the altars, 7 and the bowers, and chopped to pieces the idols. And having demolished all the high places in all the land of Israel, he returned to Jerusalem.

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And in the eighteenth year of his reign, on purpose to cleanse the land and the house, he sent Saphan son of Eselia, and Maasa, the ruler of the city, and Juach son of Joachaz 9 his recorder to repair the house of the Lord his God. So they went to Chelkias the high priest, and gave the money which had been brought into the house of God, which the Levites, the keepers of the gates had collected from Manasses and Ephraim, and the chiefs, and from all the remnant of Israel, and from the children of Juda and Benjamin and the inhabi10 tants of Jerusalem-they gave this to the board of works, who

superintended the house of the Lord; and these gave it to the 11 workmen who did the work in the house of the Lord, to fur

nish, and to strengthen the house, and they gave to the carpenters and the masons, to purchase square stones, and timber for planks to cover the houses, which the king of Juda had 12 destroyed. Though these men were intrusted with the works, yet over them were overseers, namely Jehu and Abdias the Levites of the house of Merari, and Zacharias, and Mosol13 lam, of the house of Kaath. And with regard to all the chiefs