The Fall of Jerusalem Recounted
1 Zedekiah was 21 years old when he began to reign. He reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
2 He did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, just as Jehoiakim had done. 3 This happened in Jerusalem and Judah, because of the anger of the Lord, until he had cast them out from his presence. Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
4 In the ninth year of his reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army, came against Jerusalem, and encamped against it. They built siege ramps all around it, 5 so the city was besieged until the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.
6 By the ninth day of the fourth month, the famine was so severe in the city that there was no bread for the people of the land. 7 Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled, going out of the city by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king’s garden. Now the Chaldeans had the city surrounded. The men of war went toward the Arabah, 8 but the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho, and his entire army scattered from him.
9 Then they took the king and carried him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he pronounced judgment on him. 10 The king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah in front of him. He also killed all the princes of Judah in Riblah. 11 He gouged out the eyes of Zedekiah, and the king of Babylon bound him in fetters, took him to Babylon, and put him in prison until the day of his death.
The Temple and the City Burned
12 Now on the tenth day of the fifth month, which was the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, who stood before the king of Babylon, came into Jerusalem. 13 He burned down the house of the Lord, and the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great house, he burned down. 14 The entire army of the Chaldeans, who were with the captain of the guard, broke down all of the surrounding walls of Jerusalem.
15 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took captive of the poorest of the people, and the remnant of the people who were left in the city, and those who had deserted, who fell to the king of Babylon, and the remnant from the multitudes. 16 But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left the poorest in the land to be vineyard keepers and farmers.
17 The Chaldeans broke the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the Lord, and the bases and the bronze sea that were in pieces in the house of the Lord, and carried all of their bronze to Babylon. 18 They also took away the pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the basins, the spoons, and all the vessels of bronze with which they ministered. 19 The captain of the guard took the cups, the fire pans, the basins, the pots, the lamp stands, the spoons, and the bowls, that which was solid gold and that which was solid silver.
20 They took the two pillars, the one sea, and the twelve bronze bulls that were under the bases, which king Solomon had made for the house of the Lord. The bronze from all these vessels was un-weighable. 21 As for the pillars, the height of the one pillar was 27 feet, and 18 feet in circumference, and its thickness was four fingers. It was hollow. 22 A capital of bronze was on it, and the height of the one capital was 7½ feet with network and pomegranates on the capital all around it, all of bronze: and the second pillar also had like these, and pomegranates. 23 There were 96 pomegranates on the sides. All the pomegranates were 100 on the network all around it.
Captives Carried to Babylon
24 The captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the threshold, 25 and out of the city he took an officer who was set over the men of war, and seven of the king’s advisors, who were found in the city, and the scribe of the captain of the army, who mustered the people of the land, and 60 men from the people of the land, who were found in the midst of the city. 26 Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah. 27 The king of Babylon struck them and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath.
So Judah was taken captive out of his land.
28 This is the number of the people whom Nebuchadnezzar took captive:
In the seventh year, 3,023 Jews.
29 In the 18th year of Nebuchadnezzar, he took captive from Jerusalem 832 people.
30 In the 23rd year of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took captive of the Jews, 745 people.
All the people together were 4,600.
Evil-Merodach Releases Jehoiachin
31 In the 37th year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the 12th month, in the 25th day of the month, Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, raised up Jehoiachin king of Judah, and released him from prison. 32 He spoke kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings who were with him in Babylon, 33 and changed his prison garments. Jehoiachin ate bread before him continually all the days of his life. 34 For his allowance, there was a continual allowance given him by the king of Babylon, every day he was given a portion until the day of his death–all the days of his life.