Jeremiah 52:1-34

The Destruction of Jerusalem Reviewed (2 Kings 24.18-25.26; 2 Chr 36.11-20; Jer 39.1-10)

52:1 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign; he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 2 He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, just as Jehoiakim had done. 3 Indeed, Jerusalem and Judah so angered the LORD that he expelled them from his presence.

Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. 4 And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem, and they laid siege to it; they built siegeworks against it all around. 5 So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 6 On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine became so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 7 Then a breach was made in the city wall; and all the soldiers fled and went out from the city by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were all around the city. They went in the direction of the Arabah. 8 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains ofJericho; and all his army wasscattered, deserting him. 9 Thenthey captured the king, and broughthim up to the king of Babylon atRiblah in the land of Hamath, andhe passed sentence on him. 10 Theking of Babylon killed the sons ofZedekiah before his eyes, and alsokilled all the officers of Judah atRiblah. 11 He put out the eyes ofZedekiah, and bound him in fetters,and the king of Babylon took him toBabylon, and put him in prison untilthe day of his death.

12 In the fifth month, on the tenthday of the month-which was thenineteenth year of KingNebuchadrezzar, king ofBabylon-Nebuzaradan the captain ofthe bodyguard who served the kingof Babylon, entered Jerusalem. 13He burned the house of the LORD,the king's house, and all the housesof Jerusalem; every great house heburned down. 14 All the army of theChaldeans, who were with thecaptain of the guard, broke down allthe walls around Jerusalem. 15Nebuzaradan the captain of theguard carried into exile some of thepoorest of the people and the rest ofthe people who were left in the cityand the deserters who had defectedto the king of Babylon, togetherwith the rest of the artisans. 16 ButNebuzaradan the captain of theguard left some of the poorestpeople of the land to be vinedressersand tillers of the soil.

17 The pillars of bronze that were inthe house of the LORD, and thestands and the bronze sea that werein the house of the LORD, theChaldeans broke in pieces, andcarried all the bronze to Babylon. 18They took away the pots, theshovels, the snuffers, the basins, theladles, and all the vessels of bronzeused in the temple service. 19 Thecaptain of the guard took away thesmall bowls also, the firepans, thebasins, the pots, the lampstands, theladles, and the bowls for libation,both those of gold and those ofsilver. 20 As for the two pillars, theone sea, the twelve bronze bulls thatwere under the sea, and the stands,which King Solomon had made forthe house of the LORD, the bronzeof all these vessels was beyondweighing. 21 As for the pillars, theheight of the one pillar was eighteencubits, its circumference was twelvecubits; it was hollow and itsthickness was four fingers. 22 Uponit was a capital of bronze; the heightof the capital was five cubits;latticework and pomegranates, all ofbronze, encircled the top of thecapital. And the second pillar hadthe same, with pomegranates. 23There were ninety-six pomegranateson the sides; all the pomegranatesencircling the latticework numberedone hundred.24 The captain of the guard took thechief priest Seraiah, the secondpriest Zephaniah, and the threeguardians of the threshold; 25 andfrom the city he took an officer whohad been in command of thesoldiers, and seven men of theking's council who were found inthe city; the secretary of thecommander of the army whomustered the people of the land; andsixty men of the people of the landwho were found inside the city. 26Then Nebuzaradan the captain ofthe guard took them, and broughtthem to the king of Babylon atRiblah. 27 And the king of Babylonstruck them down, and put them todeath at Riblah in the land ofHamath. So Judah went into exileout of its land.

28 This is the number of the peoplewhom Nebuchadrezzar took intoexile: in the seventh year, threethousand twenty-three Judeans; 29in the eighteenth year ofNebuchadrezzar he took into exilefrom Jerusalem eight hundredthirty-two persons; 30 in thetwenty-third year ofNebuchadrezzar, Nebuzaradan thecaptain of the guard took into exileof the Judeans seven hundredforty-five persons; all the personswere four thousand six hundred.

Jehoiachin Favored in Captivity(2 Kings 25.27-30)31 In the thirty-seventh year of theexile of King Jehoiachin of Judah,in the twelfth month, on thetwenty-fifth day of the month, KingEvil-merodach of Babylon, in theyear he began to reign, showedfavor to King Jehoiachin of Judahand brought him out of prison; 32he spoke kindly to him, and gavehim a seat above the seats of theother kings who were with him inBabylon. 33 So Jehoiachin put asidehis prison clothes, and every day ofhis life he dined regularly at theking's table. 34 For his allowance, aregular daily allowance was givenhim by the king of Babylon, as longas he lived, up to the day of hisdeath. (Jeremiah 52:1:34, NRSV)

2 Kings 24:18-25:30

Zedekiah Reigns over Judah

(2 Chr 36.11-14; Jer 52.1-3a)

18 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign; he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 19 He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, just as Jehoiakim had done. 20 Indeed, Jerusalem and Judah so angered the LORD that he expelled them from his presence.

The Fall and Captivity of Judah

(2 Chr 36.15-21; Jer 52.3b-30)

Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.25 1 And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem, and laid siege to it; they built siegeworks against it all around. 2 So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 3 On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine became so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 4 Then a breach was made in the city wall; the king with all the soldiers fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were all around the city. They went in the direction of the Arabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued theking, and overtook him in the plainsof Jericho; all his army wasscattered, deserting him. 6 Thenthey captured the king and broughthim up to the king of Babylon atRiblah, who passed sentence onhim. 7 They slaughtered the sons ofZedekiah before his eyes, then putout the eyes of Zedekiah; theybound him in fetters and took him toBabylon.

8 In the fifth month, on the seventhday of the month-which was thenineteenth year of KingNebuchadnezzar, king ofBabylon-Nebuzaradan, the captainof the bodyguard, a servant of theking of Babylon, came to Jerusalem.9 He burned the house of theLORD, the king's house, and all thehouses of Jerusalem; every greathouse he burned down. 10 All thearmy of the Chaldeans who werewith the captain of the guard brokedown the walls around Jerusalem.11 Nebuzaradan the captain of theguard carried into exile the rest ofthe people who were left in the cityand the deserters who had defectedto the king of Babylon-all the rest ofthe population. 12 But the captain ofthe guard left some of the poorestpeople of the land to be vinedressersand tillers of the soil.

13 The bronze pillars that were inthe house of the LORD, as well asthe stands and the bronze sea thatwere in the house of the LORD, theChaldeans broke in pieces, andcarried the bronze to Babylon. 14They took away the pots, theshovels, the snuffers, the dishes forincense, and all the bronze vesselsused in the temple service, 15 aswell as the firepans and the basins.What was made of gold the captainof the guard took away for the gold,and what was made of silver, for thesilver. 16 As for the two pillars, theone sea, and the stands, whichSolomon had made for the house ofthe LORD, the bronze of all thesevessels was beyond weighing. 17The height of the one pillar waseighteen cubits, and on it was abronze capital; the height of thecapital was three cubits; latticeworkand pomegranates, all of bronze,were on the capital all around. Thesecond pillar had the same, with thelatticework.

18 The captain of the guard took thechief priest Seraiah, the secondpriest Zephaniah, and the threeguardians of the threshold; 19 fromthe city he took an officer who hadbeen in command of the soldiers,and five men of the king's councilwho were found in the city; thesecretary who was the commanderof the army who mustered thepeople of the land; and sixty men ofthe people of the land who werefound in the city. 20 Nebuzaradanthe captain of the guard took them,and brought them to the king ofBabylon at Riblah. 21 The king ofBabylon struck them down and putthem to death at Riblah in the landof Hamath. So Judah went into exileout of its land.

Gedaliah Made Governor ofJudah (Jer 40.5-41.18)

22 He appointed Gedaliah son ofAhikam son of Shaphan as governorover the people who remained in theland of Judah, whom KingNebuchadnezzar of Babylon hadleft. 23 Now when all the captainsof the forces and their men heardthat the king of Babylon hadappointed Gedaliah as governor,they came with their men toGedaliah at Mizpah, namely,Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johananson of Kareah, Seraiah son ofTanhumeth the Netophathite, andJaazaniah son of the Maacathite. 24Gedaliah swore to them and theirmen, saying, "Do not be afraidbecause of the Chaldean officials;live in the land, serve the king ofBabylon, and it shall be well withyou." 25 But in the seventh month,Ishmael son of Nethaniah son ofElishama, of the royal family, camewith ten men; they struck downGedaliah so that he died, along withthe Judeans and Chaldeans whowere with him at Mizpah. 26 Thenall the people, high and low, and thecaptains of the forces set out andwent to Egypt; for they were afraidof the Chaldeans.

Jehoiachin Released from Prison(Jer 52.31-34)27 In the thirty-seventh year of theexile of King Jehoiachin of Judah,in the twelfth month, on thetwenty-seventh day of the month,King Evil-merodach of Babylon, inthe year that he began to reign,released King Jehoiachin of Judahfrom prison; 28 he spoke kindly tohim, and gave him a seat above theother seats of the kings who werewith him in Babylon. 29 SoJehoiachin put aside his prisonclothes. Every day of his life hedined regularly in the king'spresence. 30 For his allowance, aregular allowance was given him bythe king, a portion every day, aslong as he lived.

Jeremiah 39:1-10

The Fall of Jerusalem

(2 Kings 25.1-12; Jer 52.4-16)

39:1 In the ninth year of King Zedekiah of Judah, in the tenth month, King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it; 2 in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, a breach was made in the city. 3 When Jerusalem was taken, all the officials of the king of Babylon came and sat in the middle gate: Nergal-sharezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, with all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon. 4 When King Zedekiah of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled, going out of the city at night by way of the king's garden through the gate between the two walls; and they went toward the Arabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and when they had taken him, they brought him up to King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon, at Riblah, in the land of Hamath; and he passed sentence on him. 6 The king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah at Riblah before his eyes; also the king of Babylon slaughtered all the nobles of Judah. 7 He put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in fetters to take him to Babylon. 8 The Chaldeans burnedthe king's house and the houses ofthe people, and broke down thewalls of Jerusalem. 9 ThenNebuzaradan the captain of theguard exiled to Babylon the rest ofthe people who were left in the city,those who had deserted to him, andthe people who remained. 10Nebuzaradan the captain of theguard left in the land of Judah someof the poor people who ownednothing, and gave them vineyardsand fields at the same time.

2 Chronicles 36:11-21

Reign of Zedekiah

(2 Kings 24.18-20; Jer 52.1-3a)

11 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign; he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. 12 He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD his God. He did not humble himself before the prophet Jeremiah who spoke from the mouth of the LORD. 13 He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God; he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel. 14 All the leading priests and the people also were exceedingly unfaithful, following all the abominations of the nations; and they polluted the house of the LORD that he had consecrated in Jerusalem.

The Fall of Jerusalem

(2 Kings 25.1-21; Jer 52.3b-30)

15 The LORD, the God of their ancestors, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place; 16 but they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words, and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against his people became so great that there was no remedy.

17 Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their youths with the sword in the house of theirsanctuary, and had no compassionon young man or young woman, theaged or the feeble; he gave them allinto his hand. 18 All the vessels ofthe house of God, large and small,and the treasures of the house of theLORD, and the treasures of the kingand of his officials, all these hebrought to Babylon. 19 They burnedthe house of God, broke down thewall of Jerusalem, burned all itspalaces with fire, and destroyed allits precious vessels. 20 He took intoexile in Babylon those who hadescaped from the sword, and theybecame servants to him and to hissons until the establishment of thekingdom of Persia, 21 to fulfill theword of the LORD by the mouth ofJeremiah, until the land had madeup for its sabbaths. All the days thatit lay desolate it kept sabbath, tofulfill seventy years.