1 King Hezekiah sent messages to all the people of Israel and Judah, and he wrote letters to the people of Ephraim and Manasseh. Hezekiah invited all these people to come to the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover for the Lord, the God of Israel.
2 King Hezekiah, his officers, and all the people in Jerusalem agreed to celebrate the Passover in the second month.
3 They could not celebrate it at the normal time, because not enough priests had made themselves ready to serve the Lord, and the people had not yet gathered in Jerusalem.
4 This plan satisfied King Hezekiah and all the people.
5 So they made an announcement everywhere in Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, telling the people to come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover for the Lord, the God of Israel. For a long time most of the people had not celebrated the Passover as the law commanded.
6 At the king’s command, the messengers took letters from him and his officers all through Israel and Judah. This is what the letters said:People of Israel, return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. Then God will return to you who are still alive, who have escaped from the kings of Assyria.
7 Don’t be like your ancestors or your relatives. They turned against the Lord, the God of their ancestors, so he caused other people to be disgusted with them. You know this is true.