Jehoiakim King of Judah^(A)

³⁶ Jehoiakim^(B) was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Zebidah daughter of Pedaiah; she was from Rumah. ³⁷ And he did evil^(C) in the eyes of the Lord, just as his predecessors had done.

24 During Jehoiakim’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar^(D) king of Babylon invaded^(E) the land, and Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years. But then he turned against Nebuchadnezzar and rebelled.^{(F) 2} The Lord sent Babylonian,^[a](G) Aramean,^(H) Moabite and Ammonite raiders^(I) against him to destroy^(J) Judah, in accordance with the word of the Lord proclaimed by his servants the prophets.^{(K) 3} Surely these things happened to Judah according to the Lord’s command,^(L) in order to remove them from his presence^(M) because of the sins of Manasseh^(N) and all he had done, ⁴ including the shedding of innocent blood.^(O) For he had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord was not willing to forgive.^(P)

⁵ As for the other events of Jehoiakim’s reign,^(Q) and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? ⁶ Jehoiakim rested^(R) with his ancestors. And Jehoiachin^(S) his son succeeded him as king.

⁷ The king of Egypt^(T) did not march out from his own country again, because the king of Babylon^(U) had taken all his territory, from the Wadi of Egypt to the Euphrates River.

Jehoiakim King of Judah^(A)

⁵ Jehoiakim^(B) was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God. ⁶ Nebuchadnezzar^(C) king of Babylon attacked him and bound him with bronze shackles to take him to Babylon.^{(D) 7} Nebuchadnezzar also took to Babylon articles from the temple of the Lord and put them in his temple^[a] there.^(E)

⁸ The other events of Jehoiakim’s reign, the detestable things he did and all that was found against him, are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. And Jehoiachin his son succeeded him as king.

Zedekiah King of Judah^(A)

¹⁸ Zedekiah^(B) was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal^(C) daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah. ¹⁹ He did evil^(D) in the eyes of the Lord, just as Jehoiakim had done. ²⁰ It was because of the Lord’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end he thrust^(E) them from his presence.^(F)

The Fall of Jerusalem^(G)(H)(I)

Now Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

25 So in the ninth^(J) year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar^(K) king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army. He encamped outside the city and built siege works^(L) all around it. ² The city was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.

³ By the ninth day of the fourth^[a] month the famine^(M) in the city had become so severe that there was no food for the people to eat. ⁴ Then the city wall was broken through,^(N) and the whole army fled at night through the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, though the Babylonians^[b] were surrounding^(O) the city. They fled toward the Arabah,^{[c] 5} but the Babylonian^[d] army pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his soldiers were separated from him and scattered,^{(P) 6} and he was captured.^(Q)

He was taken to the king of Babylon at Riblah,^(R) where sentence was pronounced on him. ⁷ They killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. Then they put out his eyes, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon.^(S)

⁸ On the seventh day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard, an official of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. ⁹ He set fire^(T) to the temple of the Lord, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building he burned down.^{(U) 10} The whole Babylonian army under the commander of the imperial guard broke down the walls^(V) around Jerusalem. ¹¹ Nebuzaradan the commander of the guard carried into exile^(W) the people who remained in the city, along with the rest of the populace and those who had deserted to the king of Babylon.^{(X) 12} But the commander left behind some of the poorest people^(Y) of the land to work the vineyards and fields.

¹³ The Babylonians broke^(Z) up the bronze pillars, the movable stands and the bronze Sea that were at the temple of the Lord and they carried the bronze to Babylon. ¹⁴ They also took away the pots, shovels, wick trimmers, dishes^(AA) and all the bronze articles^(AB) used in the temple service. ¹⁵ The commander of the imperial guard took away the censers and sprinkling bowls—all that were made of pure gold or silver.^(AC)

¹⁶ The bronze from the two pillars, the Sea and the movable stands, which Solomon had made for the temple of the Lord, was more than could be weighed. ¹⁷ Each pillar^(AD) was eighteen cubits^[e] high. The bronze capital on top of one pillar was three cubits^[f] high and was decorated with a network and pomegranates of bronze all around. The other pillar, with its network, was similar.

¹⁸ The commander of the guard took as prisoners Seraiah^(AE) the chief priest, Zephaniah^(AF) the priest next in rank and the three doorkeepers.^{(AG) 19} Of those still in the city, he took the officer in charge of the fighting men, and five royal advisers. He also took the secretary who was chief officer in charge of conscripting the people of the land and sixty of the conscripts who were found in the city. ²⁰ Nebuzaradan the commander took them all and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. ²¹ There at Riblah,^(AH) in the land of Hamath, the king had them executed.^(AI)

So Judah went into captivity,^(AJ) away from her land.^(AK)

Zedekiah King of Judah^(A)

¹¹ Zedekiah^(B) was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. ¹² He did evil in the eyes of the Lord^(C) his God and did not humble^(D) himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke the word of the Lord. ¹³ He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him take an oath^(E) in God’s name. He became stiff-necked^(F) and hardened his heart and would not turn to the Lord, the God of Israel. ¹⁴ Furthermore, all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful,^(G) following all the detestable practices of the nations and defiling the temple of the Lord, which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.

The Fall of Jerusalem^(H)(I)

¹⁵ The Lord, the God of their ancestors, sent word to them through his messengers^(J) again and again,^(K) because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place. ¹⁶ But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his words and scoffed^(L) at his prophets until the wrath^(M) of the Lord was aroused against his people and there was no remedy.^{(N) 17} He brought up against them the king of the Babylonians,^[a](O) who killed their young men with the sword in the sanctuary, and did not spare young men^(P) or young women, the elderly or the infirm.^(Q) God gave them all into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar.^{(R) 18} He carried to Babylon all the articles^(S) from the temple of God, both large and small, and the treasures of the Lord’s temple and the treasures of the king and his officials. ¹⁹ They set fire^(T) to God’s temple^(U) and broke down the wall^(V) of Jerusalem; they burned all the palaces and destroyed^(W) everything of value there.^(X)

²⁰ He carried into exile^(Y) to Babylon the remnant, who escaped from the sword, and they became servants^(Z) to him and his successors until the kingdom of Persia came to power. ²¹ The land enjoyed its sabbath rests;^(AA) all the time of its desolation it rested,^(AB) until the seventy years^(AC) were completed in fulfillment of the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah.