King Hezekiah and the Passover
And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, to keep the passover unto the LORD God of Israel. For the king had taken counsel, and his princes, and all the congregation in Jerusalem, to keep the passover in the second month. For they could not keep it at that time, because the priests had not sanctified themselves sufficiently, neither had the people gathered themselves together to Jerusalem. And the thing pleased the king and all the congregation. So they established a decree to make proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba even to Dan, that they should come to keep the passover unto the LORD God of Israel at Jerusalem: for they had not done it of a long time in such sort as it was written.-2 Chronicles 30:1-5
So the posts went with the letters from the king and his princes throughout all Israel and Judah, and according to the commandment of the king, saying,Ye children of Israel, turn again unto the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and he will return to the remnant of you, that are escaped out of the hand of the kings of Assyria. And be not ye like your fathers, and like your brethren, which trespassed against the LORD God of their fathers, who therefore gave them up to desolation, as ye see. Now be ye not stiffnecked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves unto the LORD, and enter into his sanctuary, which he hath sanctified for ever: and serve the LORD your God, that the fierceness of his wrath may turn away from you. For if ye turn again unto the LORD, your brethren and your children shall find compassion before them that lead them captive, so that they shall come again into this land: for the LORD your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away his face from you, if ye return unto him.-2 Chronicles 30:6-9So the posts passed from city to city though the country of Ephraim and Manasseh even unto Zebulun: but they laughed them to scorn, and mocked them. Nevertheless divers of Asher and Manasseh and of Zebulun humbled themselves, and came to Jerusalem. Also in Judah the hand of God was to give them one heart to do the commandment of the king and of the princes, by the word of the LORD. And there assembled at Jerusalem much people to keep the feast of unleavened bread in the second month, a very great congregation. And they arose and took away the altars that were in Jerusalem, and all the altars for incense took they away, and cast them into the brook Kidron. Then they killed the passover on the fourteenth day of the second month: and the priests and the Levites were ashamed, and sanctified themselves, and brought in the burnt offerings into the house of the LORD. And they stood in their place after their manner, according to the law of Moses the man of God: the priests sprinkled the blood, which they received of the hand of the Levites. For there were many in the congregation that were not sanctified: therefore the Levites had the charge of the killing of the passovers for every one that was not clean, to sanctify them unto the LORD. For a multitude of the people, even many of Ephraim, and Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet did they eat the passover otherwise than it was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, The good LORD pardon every one That prepareth his heart to seek God, the LORD God of his fathers, though he be not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary. And the LORD hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people.-2 Chronicles 20:10-20
Background Information:
Isaac was the only child born to Abraham (Abram the Hebrew) and Sarah (Sarai). Fraternal twins Esau (Edom) and Jacob (Israel) were the only children born to Isaac and Rebekah. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and daughter Dinah were born to Jacob and his 1st wife Leah. Dan and Naphtali were born to Jacob and maidservant Bilhah. Gad and Asher were born to Jacob and maidservant Zilpah. Joseph and Benjamin were born to Jacob and his 2nd wife Rachel. When Joseph was at least 17 years old, his brothers sold him to merchants traveling to Egypt and led Jacob to believe that Joseph was killed by a beast. The merchants sold Joseph to Potiphar, an Egyptian official. After Poitphar's wife made a false accusation, Potiphar put Joseph in prison and Joseph explained the meaning of 2 separate dreams to 2 separate prisoners. At least 2 years thereafter, Joseph explained the meaning of a dream to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and Pharaoh proclaimed Jesus to be second-in-command in Egypt. Manasseh and Ephraim were born to Joseph and his wife Asenath. When Joseph's brothers journeyed to Egypt the 2nd time during a famine, Joseph identified himself to them, and told his brothers to move with their families, with Jacob, from Canaan to Egypt. Moreover, Pharaoh spoke about the good he would give Joseph's family. Thus, 130-year-old Jacob moved to Egypt with his family and Jacob proclaimed Manasseh and Ephraim to be his own sons. The tribe of Joseph became known as the tribe of Manasseh and the tribe of Ephraim. Sometime after 147-year-old Jacob died in Egypt and his family buried his body in Canaan, and 110-year old Joseph and his siblings were dead, their descendants the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt. Miriam and her younger brothers Aaron and Moses were Israelites from the tribe of Levi. When Moses was 80 years old and Aaron was 83, the Lord God sent them to speak to the Israelite elders and Pharaoh. Before the Lord God brought the 10th and final plague upon Pharaoh and Egypt, the Lord God gave Moses and Aaron the commands for Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. After the last plague, the death of all firstborn Egyptian people and beasts, Moses and Aaron led the Israelites, and those with them, away from Egypt, across the divinely parted Red Sea, and into the desert wilderness of Shur. During the 40-year journey to Canaan, the Promised Land, Miriam the prophetess died and was buried in Kadesh, in the desert wilderness of Zin. Upon Mount Hor, 123-year-old Aaron the priest died. When Moses the prophet went upon Mount Nebo, the Lord God showed Moses the Promised Land, and 120-year-old Moses died and was divinely buried. Joshua, Moses' successor, led the Israelites across the divinely parted Jordan River and onto the land that the Lord God promised to give to Abraham, and Isaac, and to Jacob, and their descendants. Over 300 years after 110-year-old Joshua died and was buried in his tribe's portion of the Promised Land, Saul, from the tribe of Benjamin, became the 1st king to reign over the Israelites. David, from the tribe of Judah, was the 2nd king to reign over all of the Israelites. Solomon, the 2nd child born to David and Bathsheba, was the 3rd king to rule. During the 11th year of Solomon's 40-year reign, Solomon's workers finished building the temple of the Lord. Rehoboam, the son born to Solomon and Naamah was the 4th king to reign over all of the Israelites. After Rehoboam gave a specific answer, the Israelites split into 2 kingdoms, according to the will of the Lord God, due to the idolatry and other wickedness of Solomon. Judah was the nation in the south and consisted of the tribe of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin. Jerusalem was the royal city and Rehoboam was the 1st king to reign. Israel was the northern nation and consisted of the other Israelite tribes. Samaria was the final royal city, and Jeroboam, the son born to Nebat and Zeruah, was the 1st king to reign. The tribe of Ephraim was a large and prominent tribe in the northern nation of Israel and sometimes the entire northern nation was identified as Ephraim. King Pekah was the 18th king to rule over all of the Israelites in the northern nation of Israel. During Pekah's 20-year reign, the Assyrians invaded the kingdom and King Tiglath-pileser, ruler of Assyria, began taking Israelites to Assyria. During the 9th year of the reign of King Hoshea, the 19th king to rule the northern nation of Israel, the conquered Samaria, according to the will of the Lord God, due to the idolatry and other wickedness of the Israelites. Rehoboam's great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandson Hezekiah was the 12th king to rule Judah.The divinely inspired Scriptures of the Holy Bible reveal that among Judah's kings, Hezekiah's trust in the Lord God was unparalleled. Hezekiah's great-great-grandson Jehoiakim (Eliakim) was the 17th king to rule Judah. During Jehoiakim's 11-year reign, the Babylonians (Chaldeans) invaded Judah and Jersualem and King Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of Babylon, began looting the temple of the Lord. Jehoiachin (Jeconiah/Coniah), the son born to Jehoiakim and Nehushta, was the 18th king to rule Judah. During Jehoiachin's 3-month reign, the Babylonians took more prominent Israelites, including Jehoiachin, his wives and mother, to Babylon. During the 11th year of the reign of Jehoiakim's brother King Zedekiah (Mattaniah), the 19th king to rule Judah, the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem, according to the will of the Lord God, due to the idolatry and other wickedness of the Israelites. Over 500 years after Israelites began returning to Judah and Jerusalem, Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, was born. Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit in the womb of Mary, a virgin, and Jesus was born into the tribe of Judah, the tribe of Judah's kings, to Mary and her husband Joseph when Mary was a virgin. Several of the divinely inspired Scriptures of the Holy Bible, including Matthew 26:2, Matthew 26:17-19, Mark 14:1, Mark 14:12-16, Luke 2:41, Luke 22:1, Luke 22:7-15, John 2:13-23, John 6:4, John 11:55, John 12:1, John 13:1, John 18:28, John 18:39, and John 19:14, reveal details about Jesus the Christ, Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread.-Genesis 11:26-50:26, Exodus, Numbers 13:1-14:45, 20:1-29, 27:12-23, Deuteronomy 31:1-34:12, Joshua 1:1-4:24, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles 1:1-34, 2:1-17, 3:1-24, 6:1-81, 8:1-40, 9:35-29:30, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Jeremiah 39:1-18, 52:1-34, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts 1:1-26 the
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