⁷ They also shut the doors of the portico and put out the lamps. They did not burn incense^(A) or present any burnt offerings at the sanctuary to the God of Israel. ⁸ Therefore, the anger of the Lord has fallen on Judah and Jerusalem; he has made them an object of dread and horror^(B) and scorn,^(C) as you can see with your own eyes. ⁹ This is why our fathers have fallen by the sword and why our sons and daughters and our wives are in captivity.^{(D) 10} Now I intend to make a covenant^(E) with the Lord, the God of Israel, so that his fierce anger^(F) will turn away from us. ¹¹ My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand before him and serve him,^(G) to minister^(H) before him and to burn incense.”

²⁰ Early the next morning King Hezekiah gathered the city officials together and went up to the temple of the Lord. ²¹ They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven male lambs and seven male goats^(A) as a sin offering^[a](B) for the kingdom, for the sanctuary and for Judah. The king commanded the priests, the descendants of Aaron, to offer these on the altar of the Lord. ²² So they slaughtered the bulls, and the priests took the blood and splashed it against the altar; next they slaughtered the rams and splashed their blood against the altar; then they slaughtered the lambs and splashed their blood^(C) against the altar. ²³ The goats^(D) for the sin offering were brought before the king and the assembly, and they laid their hands^(E) on them. ²⁴ The priests then slaughtered the goats and presented their blood on the altar for a sin offering to atone^(F) for all Israel, because the king had ordered the burnt offering and the sin offering for all Israel.^(G)