2 Tawarikh 13:9-12

13:9 But you banished ¹  the Lord’s priests, Aaron’s descendants, and the Levites, and appointed your own priests just as the surrounding nations do! Anyone who comes to consecrate himself with a young bull or seven rams becomes a priest of these fake gods! ²  13:10 But as for us, the Lord is our God and we have not rejected him. Aaron’s descendants serve as the Lord’s priests and the Levites assist them with the work. ³  13:11 They offer burnt sacrifices to the Lord every morning and every evening, along with fragrant incense. They arrange the Bread of the Presence on a ritually clean table and light the lamps on the gold lampstand every evening. Certainly ⁴  we are observing the Lord our God’s regulations, but you have rejected him. 13:12 Now look, God is with us as our leader. His priests are ready to blow the trumpets to signal the attack against you. ⁵  You Israelites, don’t fight against the Lord God of your ancestors, ⁶  for you will not win!”

[13:9]  ¹ tn In the Hebrew text this is phrased as a rhetorical question, “Did you not banish?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course you did,” the force of which is reflected in the translation “But you banished.”

[13:9]  ² tn Heb “whoever comes to fill his hand with a bull of a son of cattle, and seven rams, and he is a priest to no-gods.”

[13:10]  ³ tn Heb “and priests serving the Lord [are] the sons of Aaron and the Levites in the work.”

[13:11]  ⁴ tn Or “for.”

[13:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “and his priests and the trumpets of the war alarm [are ready] to sound out against you.”

[13:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 18).