In this chapter we have an account of the keeping of the passover and its preparation, for which the priests and Levites were ordered to prepare, and to which Josiah, and his princes, gave liberally, and such an one was kept as had not been for ages past, 2 Chron.

Moreover, Josiah kept a passover unto the Lord in Jerusalem, &c.] Where only it was to be kept: and they killed the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month; the month Nisan, as the Targum, which was the exact time of killing the passover lamb, according to the law of Moses, , in the…

And he set the priests in their charges In their offices, and in their proper places, to execute them: and encouraged them to the service of the house of the Lord; to attend it with cheerfulness and constancy, and do it according to the will of God, promising his favour and protection.

And said unto the Levites that taught all Israel Whose business it was to go through the several tribes, and instruct them in the knowledge of God, his word and worship, statutes and ordinances. In an ancient MS.

And prepare yourselves To do their work in this service of the sanctuary, the passover; that they be ready to do it, and diligent in it, and perform it according to the law of God: by the houses of your fathers, after your courses; such of them whose turn in course it was to officiate: according to…

And stand in the holy place The court of the priests, where their ministrations were: according to the divisions of the families of your brethren the people; of the other tribes, who were according to their families to provide a lamb for the passover: and after the division of the families of the…

So kill the passover In the manner, time, and place, and for the persons it should be killed: and sanctify yourselves: by washing themselves and garments, that they might be fit for this service: and prepare your brethren; prepare a lamb for your brethren, or instruct them how to perform their…

And Josiah gave to the people, of the flock, lambs and kids, all for the passover offerings Which be either lambs or kids of the goats, , for all that were present, to the number of 30,000; that is, 30,000 lambs or kids, which would serve 30,000 families: and three thousand bullocks; these were for…

And his princes gave willingly to the people, to the priests and the Levites Besides, to some other families, they gave also to poor priests and Levites, which the king’s bounty did not extend to; and these princes were not secular, but ecclesiastical princes, as follows: Hilkiah, and Zechariah,…

Cononiah also, and Shemaiah and Nathaneel his brethren See and Hashabiah, and Jehiel, and Jozabad, chief of the Levites; men of considerable substance, and in good posts and offices: gave unto the Levites; their poor brethren of that order: for passover offerings five thousand small cattle; lambs,…

So the service was prepared Every thing was got ready both for the passover and the feast of unleavened bread, for all sorts of people, rich and poor: and the priests stood in their place; in their court near the altar, to sprinkle the blood of the sacrifices about it, as in the following verse:…

And they killed the passover The lambs for the passover, which was done by the Levites: and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands; which they received from the Levites, see . and the Levites flayed them; the passover lambs, took off their skins.

And they removed the burnt offerings Either such of the lambs and kids as were designed for burnt offerings for the people; these they separated from those that were for the passover; or they removed from them what was to be burnt, the fat of the inwards, of the kidneys, and the caul on the liver:…

And they roasted the passover with fire, according to the ordinance Of the Lord by Moses, but the other holy offerings; which were the peace offerings: sod they in pots, and in cauldrons, and pans; which was forbid to be done with the passover lamb, but might with the other sacrifices, which were…

And afterwards they made ready for themselves, and for the priests The passover lambs, and such parts of the peace offerings that belonged to them: because the priests the sons of Aaron were busied in offering burnt offerings; such as are before said to be removed or separated for that purpose: and…

And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place In the court of the priests, singing and playing on their instruments while the sacrifices were offering: according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the king’s seer; the same with Ethan; and everyone were seers, as…

So all the service of the Lord was prepared the same day With every sacrifice, and for all sorts of persons: to keep the passover, and to offer burnt offerings upon the altar of the Lord; which were required to be done on that day: according to the commandment of King Josiah; which was, that every…

And the children of Israel that were present kept the passover at that time In its proper time, on the fourteenth day of Nisan: and the feast of unleavened bread seven days; the seven days following the passover, as the Lord by Moses appointed.

And there was no passover like to that kept in Israel So exactly according to the law, so universally by Israel and Judah, and with such liberality shown by the king, and the chief of the priests and Levites; of this, and the following verse, (See Gill on 2 Kings 23:22), (See Gill on 2 Kings 23:23)

And there was no passover like to that kept in Israel So exactly according to the law, so universally by Israel and Judah, and with such liberality shown by the king, and the chief of the priests and Levites; of this, and the following verse, (See Gill on 2 Kings 23:22), (See Gill on 2 Kings 23:23)

After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple Purified it, and cleansed it from the filth in it, and from all idolatry, and had repaired it, and put the service of it in good order, and on a good footing, after which great prosperity in church and state might have been expected: Necho king of…

But he sent ambassadors to him That is, Necho sent to Josiah: saying, what have I to do with thee, thou king of Judah? signifying he had no quarrel with him, he did not come to fight with him, and he had no business to intermeddle between him and another prince: I come not against thee this day; in…

Nevertheless, Josiah would not turn his face from him Or withdraw his forces, and go back: but disguised himself that he might fight with him; without being personally known, and aimed at, see and hearkened not unto the words of Necho from the mouth of God: not believing that what he said came from…

And the archers shot at King Josiah For, though disguised, he appeared to be a general officer, and indeed chief commander, and therefore aimed at him, and pressed him hard: and the king said to his servants, have me away, for I am wounded; as Ahab said, when in the like case, .

And his servants therefore took him out of that chariot Dead, and had him to Jerusalem, and buried him; (See Gill on 2 Kings 23:30), and all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah; he having been so good a king, so tender of them, and such an happy instrument in restoring the true religion, and the…

And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah Composed a lamentation for him, which is now lost; for what is said in respects Zedekiah, and not Josiah: and all the singing men, and all the singing women, spake of Josiah in their lamentations unto this day; who were made use of on mournful occasions, as the…

Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and his goodness His piety towards God, and liberality to the people; of these two verses, (See Gill on 2 Kings 23:28).

Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and his goodness His piety towards God, and liberality to the people; of these two verses, (See Gill on 2 Kings 23:28).