Josiah
1 The memory of Josiah
2
He succeeded in turning around the people, and he removed unlawful displays of idolatry.
3
He directed his heart toward the Lord; at a time of lawlessness, he made devotion to God stronger.
Destruction of Jerusalem
4 Except for David, Hezekiah, and Josiah, all of them struck a bad chord, because they abandoned the Law of the Most High. The kings of Judah came to an end.
5
They gave their power to others and their glory to a foreign nation,
6
which set fire to Jerusalem, the chosen city, and its sanctuary and made its streets desolate, as Jeremiah said.
7
They mistreated him, even though he had been set apart from the womb to be a prophet to uproot, ruin, destroy, and likewise to build and plant.
Ezekiel
8 Ezekiel saw a vision of glory, when God showed him the chariot of the winged creatures.
9
He remembered the enemies in the storm, and favored those keeping to a righteous path.
10
May the bones of the twelve prophets sprout new life from their burial places, because they comforted Jacob and rescued them with hopeful confidence.
Zerubbabel, Joshua, and Nehemiah
11 How should we praise Zerubbabel? He also was like a signet ring on the right hand,
12
as was Joshua, Jozadak's son. In their time, they built a house and raised a holy temple to the Lord, prepared for everlasting glory.
13
Nehemiah's memory is lasting; he who raised our fallen walls, set up gates and bars, and rebuilt our buildings.
Miscellaneous ancestors
14 No one was created on the earth who was like Enoch, for he was taken up from the earth.
15
Nor has any man been born like Joseph, a leader of his brothers, a support for the people. They took special care even of his bones.
16
Shem and Seth were honored among human beings, and above every living thing in creation was Adam.