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He also instructed the Levites, the Temple servants, to purify themselves for the Lord's service, so that they could put the sacred Covenant Box of the Lord in the Temple that King Solomon, the son of David, had built.
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Josiah said to them, "You must no longer carry it from place to place, but you are to serve the Lord your God and minister to his people Israel. Get ready by family and clan to carry out your duties
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according to the directions given by King David and the splendid way that they were carried out by his son King Solomon. Take your places in the Temple in proper order according to your family divisions as Levites serving the Lord for the people of Israel.
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Kill the Passover lambs and goats and prepare the sacrifices for your people. Then celebrate the Passover according to the instructions that the Lord gave to Moses."
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Josiah gave to the people who were present 30,000 young sheep and goats and 3,000 calves. These were a gift from the royal estates to carry out the promise he had made to the people, the priests, and the Levites.
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The officials in charge of the Temple - Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel - also gave the priests 2,600 sheep and 300 calves for the sacrifices during the festival.
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And the army commanders - Conaniah, Shemaiah and his brother Nethanel, Hashabiah, Ochiel, and Joram - contributed 5,000 sheep and 700 calves for the Levites to offer as sacrifices.
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Here is what happened. The priests and the Levites, dressed in the proper manner and carrying the unleavened bread, came that morning to present the offerings to the Lord according to the instructions in the Law of Moses. They took their positions in front of the people in the order of tribal and family divisions.
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The Levites roasted the Passover sacrifices and then boiled them in pots and kettles, making a pleasant smell.
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Then they distributed the meat to all the people. After that was done, they took meat for themselves and for the priests, the descendants of Aaron,