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33.21 Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign; and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the, as did Manasseh his father; and Amon sacrificed unto all the graven images which Manasseh his father had made, and served them. And he humbled not himself before the, as Manasseh his father had humbled himself; but this same Amon became guilty more and more. And his servants conspired against him, and put him to death in his own house. But the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon; and the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his stead.

Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign; and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem. And he did that which was right in the eyes of the, and walked in the ways of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left. For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father; and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the Asherim, and the graven images, and the molten images. And they broke down the altars of the Baalim in his presence; and the sun-images, that were on high above them, he hewed down; and the Asherim, and the graven images, and the molten images, he broke in pieces, and made dust of them, and strewed it upon the graves of them that had sacrificed unto them. And he burnt the bones of the priests upon their altars, and purged Judah and Jerusalem. And so did he in the cities of Manasseh and Ephraim and Simeon, even unto Naphtali, with their axes round about. And he broke down the altars, and beat the Asherim and the graven images into powder, and hewed down all the sun-images throughout all the land of Israel, and returned to Jerusalem.

Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land, and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah the governor of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz the recorder, to repair the house of the his God. And they came to Hilkiah the high priest, and delivered the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites, the keepers of the door, had gathered of the hand of Manasseh and Ephraim, and of all the remnant of Israel, and of all Judah and Benjamin, and they returned to Jerusalem. And they delivered it into the hand of the workmen that had the oversight of the house of the ; and the workmen that wrought in the house of the gave it to mend and repair the house; even to the carpenters and to the builders gave they it, to buy hewn stone, and timber for couplings, and to make beams for the houses which the kings of Judah had destroyed. And the men did the work faithfully; and the overseers of them were Jahath and Obadiah, the Levites, of the sons of Merari; and Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites, to preside over it; and other of the Levites, all that had skill with instruments of music. Also they were over the bearers of burdens, and presided over all that did the work in every manner of service; and of the Levites there were scribes, and officers, and porters.

And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of the, Hilkiah the priest found the book of the Law of the