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340 houses of your brethren the children of the people, and let there be for each a portion of a fathers' house of the Levites. And kill the passover, and sanctify yourselves, and prepare for your brethren, to do according to the word of the by the hand of Moses. And Josiah gave to the children of the people, of the flock, lambs and kids, all of them for the passover offerings, unto all that were present, to the number of thirty thousand, and three thousand bullocks: these were of the king's substance. And his princes gave for a freewill offering unto the people, to the priests, and to the Levites. Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, the rulers of the house of God, gave unto the priests for the passover offerings two thousand and six hundred small cattle, and three hundred oxen. Conaniah also, and Shemaiah and Nethanel, his brethren, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, the chiefs of the Levites, gave unto the Levites for the passover offerings five thousand small cattle, and five hundred oxen. So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites by their courses, according to the king's commandment. And they killed the

5. the children of the people] i.e. the laity. The same phrase is translated in 2 Kin. xxiii. 6 "the common people" (without any invidious meaning).

let there be for each a portion of the Levites] Each great division of the laity was to be served by a small division of the Levites.

6. prepare for your brethren] Cp. vv. 12, 13.

7. gave] mg. gave for offerings; cp. xxx. 24, where it is said that Hezekiah did the same at his great Passover.

8. for a freewill offering] Better, as A.V. and mg., willingly.

Jehiel] 1 Esdras ) suggests a different name, probably Haziel.

rulers of the house of God] Cp. 1 Chr. ix. 11, note.

9. Conaniah and Shemaiah] Cp. the "Conaniah and Shimei his brother" of xxxi. 12, and for Jozabad cp. the "Jozabad" of xxxi. 13. Different persons, however, must surely be meant, or perhaps the names represent families rather than individuals; nearly sixty years separate the reigns of Hezekiah and Josiah.

10—13. The variations in 1 Esdras i. 10—12 are misunderstandings of the Heb.; see Cook, ad loc.