2 Kings 25

Fall and Captivity of Judah

1 u And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, v Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it. w And they built siegeworks all around it. 2 So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 3 On the ninth day of the fourth month x the famine was 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, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, by y the king's garden, though z the Chaldeans were around the city. And they went in the direction of the a Arabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. 6 Then they captured the king b and brought him up to the king of Babylon at c Riblah, and they passed sentence on him. 7 They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, d and put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains and took him to Babylon.

8 e In the fifth month, on f the seventh day of the month - that was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon - Nebuzaradan, the captain of the bodyguard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 9 g And he burned the house of the Lord h and the king's house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down. 10 And all the army of the Chaldeans, who were with the captain of the guard, i broke down the walls around Jerusalem. 11 j And the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the multitude, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried into exile. 12 But the captain of the guard left k some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen.

13 l And the pillars m of bronze that were in the house of the Lord, and n the stands and o the bronze sea that were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried the bronze to Babylon. 14 p And they took away the pots and the shovels and the snuffers and the dishes for incense and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service, 15 the fire pans also and the bowls. What was of gold the captain of the guard took away as gold, and what was of silver, as silver. 16 As for the two pillars, the one sea, and the stands that Solomon had made for the house of the Lord, q the bronze of all these vessels was beyond weight. 17 r The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, 1 and on it was a capital of bronze. The height of the capital was three cubits. A latticework and pomegranates, all of bronze, were all around the capital. And the second pillar had the same, with the latticework.

18 s And the captain of the guard took t Seraiah the chief priest and u Zephaniah the second priest and the three keepers of the threshold, 19 and from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of war, and v five men of the king's council who were found in the city, and the secretary of the commander of the army who mustered the people of the land, and sixty men of the people of the land who were found in the city. 20 And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at w Riblah. 21 And the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at w Riblah in the land of Hamath. x So Judah was taken into exile out of its land.

Gedaliah Made Governor of Judah

22 And over the people who remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, he appointed y Gedaliah the son of z Ahikam, son of Shaphan, governor. 23 a Now when all the captains and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah governor, they came with their men to Gedaliah at b Mizpah, namely, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite. 24 And Gedaliah swore to them and their men, saying, "Do not be afraid because of the Chaldean officials. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you." 25 c But in the seventh month, d Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family, came with ten men and struck down Gedaliah and put him to death along with the Jews and the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah. 26 e Then all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the forces arose and went to Egypt, for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.

Jehoiachin Released from Prison

27 f And in the thirty-seventh year of g the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously h freed 2 Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. 28 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life i he dined regularly at the king's table, 30 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, as long as he lived.

  1. Cross References
    2 Kings 25:1 - 7
    And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it. And they built siegeworks all around it.
    2 Chronicles 36:17 - 20
    Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or aged. He gave them all into his hand.
    Jeremiah 39:1 - 7
    In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it.
    Jeremiah 52:4 - 11
    And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem, and laid siege to it. And they built siegeworks all around it.
  2. Cross References
    Jeremiah 34:1 - 2
    The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army and all the kingdoms of the earth under his dominion and all the peoples were fighting against Jerusalem and all of its cities:
    Jeremiah 39:1 - 2
    In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it.
    Ezekiel 24:2
    Son of man, write down the name of this day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.
  3. Cross References
    Ezekiel 21:22
    Into his right hand comes the divination for Jerusalem, to set battering rams, to open the mouth with murder, to lift up the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, to cast up mounds, to build siege towers.
    Ezekiel 26:8
    He will kill with the sword your daughters on the mainland. He will set up a siege wall against you and throw up a mound against you, and raise a roof of shields against you.
  4. Cross References
    Lamentations 4:9 - 10
    Happier were the victims of the sword than the victims of hunger, who wasted away, pierced by lack of the fruits of the field.
  5. Cross References
    Nehemiah 3:15
    And Shallum the son of Col-hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah, repaired the Fountain Gate. He rebuilt it and covered it and set its doors, its bolts, and its bars. And he built the wall of the Pool of Shelah of the king's garden, as far as the stairs that go down from the city of David.
  6. Cross References
    2 Kings 24:2
    And the Lord sent against him bands of the Chaldeans and bands of the Syrians and bands of the Moabites and bands of the Ammonites, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by his servants the prophets.
  7. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 1:1
    These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel beyond the Jordan in the wilderness, in the Arabah opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab.
  8. Cross References
    Jeremiah 32:4
    Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye.
  9. Cross References
    2 Kings 23:33
    And Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
  10. Cross References
    Ezekiel 12:13
    And I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare. And I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, yet he shall not see it, and he shall die there.
  11. Cross References
    2 Kings 25:8 - 12
    In the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month - that was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon - Nebuzaradan, the captain of the bodyguard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem.
    Jeremiah 39:8 - 12
    The Chaldeans burned the king's house and the house of the people, and broke down the walls of Jerusalem.
    Jeremiah 52:12 - 16
    In the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month - that was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon - Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard, who served the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem.
  12. Cross References
    Jeremiah 52:12
    In the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month - that was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon - Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard, who served the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem.
  13. Cross References
    2 Chronicles 36:19
    And they burned the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem and burned all its palaces with fire and destroyed all its precious vessels.
    Psalms 79:1
    O God, the nations have come into your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple; they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
  14. Cross References
    Hosea 8:14
    For Israel has forgotten his Maker and built palaces, and Judah has multiplied fortified cities; so I will send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour her strongholds.
    Amos 2:5
    So I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the strongholds of Jerusalem.
  15. Cross References
    Nehemiah 1:3
    And they said to me, "The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.
  16. Cross References
    2 Chronicles 36:20
    He took into exile in Babylon those who had escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and to his sons until the establishment of the kingdom of Persia.
  17. Cross References
    2 Kings 24:14
    He carried away all Jerusalem and all the officials and all the mighty men of valor, 10,000 captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths. None remained, except the poorest people of the land.
    Jeremiah 40:7
    When all the captains of the forces in the open country and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land and had committed to him men, women, and children, those of the poorest of the land who had not been taken into exile to Babylon.
  18. Cross References
    Jeremiah 27:19
    For thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the pillars, the sea, the stands, and the rest of the vessels that are left in this city.
    Jeremiah 27:22
    They shall be carried to Babylon and remain there until the day when I visit them, declares the Lord. Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.
    2 Kings 25:13 - 17
    And the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the Lord, and the stands and the bronze sea that were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried the bronze to Babylon.
    2 Chronicles 36:18 - 20
    And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon.
    Jeremiah 52:17 - 23
    And the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the Lord, and the stands and the bronze sea that were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces, and carried all the bronze to Babylon.
  19. Cross References
    1 Kings 7:15
    He cast two pillars of bronze. Eighteen cubits was the height of one pillar, and a line of twelve cubits measured its circumference. It was hollow, and its thickness was four fingers. The second pillar was the same.
  20. Cross References
    1 Kings 7:27
    He also made the ten stands of bronze. Each stand was four cubits long, four cubits wide, and three cubits high.
  21. Cross References
    1 Kings 7:23
    Then he made the sea of cast metal. It was round, ten cubits from brim to brim, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference.
  22. Cross References
    Exodus 27:3
    You shall make pots for it to receive its ashes, and shovels and basins and forks and fire pans. You shall make all its utensils of bronze.
    1 Kings 7:45
    Now the pots, the shovels, and the basins, all these vessels in the house of the Lord, which Hiram made for King Solomon, were of burnished bronze.
    1 Kings 7:50
    The cups, snuffers, basins, dishes for incense, and fire pans, of pure gold; and the sockets of gold, for the doors of the innermost part of the house, the Most Holy Place, and for the doors of the nave of the temple.
  23. Cross References
    1 Kings 7:47
    And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because there were so many of them; the weight of the bronze was not ascertained.
  24. Cross References
    1 Kings 7:15 - 18
    He cast two pillars of bronze. Eighteen cubits was the height of one pillar, and a line of twelve cubits measured its circumference. It was hollow, and its thickness was four fingers. The second pillar was the same.
    2 Chronicles 3:15
    In front of the house he made two pillars thirty-five cubits high, with a capital of five cubits on the top of each.
  25. Cross References
    2 Kings 25:18 - 21
    And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest and Zephaniah the second priest and the three keepers of the threshold.
    Jeremiah 52:24 - 27
    And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the threshold.
  26. Cross References
    1 Chronicles 6:14
    Azariah fathered Seraiah, Seraiah fathered Jehozadak.
    Ezra 7:1
    Now after this, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, son of Azariah, son of Hilkiah.
  27. Cross References
    Jeremiah 21:1
    This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur the son of Malchiah and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, saying.
    Jeremiah 29:25
    Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: You have sent letters in your name to all the people who are in Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying.
    Jeremiah 37:3
    King Zedekiah sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, to Jeremiah the prophet, saying, "Please pray for us to the Lord our God.
  28. Cross References
    Esther 1:14
    The men next to him being Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media, who saw the king's face, and sat first in the kingdom):
    Jeremiah 52:25
    And from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of war, and seven men of the king's council, who were found in the city; and the secretary of the commander of the army who mustered the people of the land; and sixty men of the people of the land, who were found in the midst of the city.
  29. Cross References
    2 Kings 23:33
    And Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
  30. Cross References
    2 Kings 25:20
    And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.
  31. Cross References
    2 Kings 23:27
    And the Lord said, "I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and I will cast off this city that I have chosen, Jerusalem, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there.
    Leviticus 26:33
    And I will scatter you among the nations, and I will unsheathe the sword after you, and your land shall be a desolation, and your cities shall be a waste.
    Deuteronomy 28:64
    And the Lord will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known.
  32. Cross References
    Jeremiah 39:14
    Sent and took Jeremiah from the court of the guard. They entrusted him to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, that he should take him home. So he lived among the people.
    Jeremiah 40:5
    If you remain, then return to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon appointed governor of the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people. Or go wherever you think it right to go." So the captain of the guard gave him an allowance of food and a present, and let him go.
  33. Cross References
    2 Kings 22:12
    And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Micaiah, and Shaphan the secretary, and Asaiah the king's servant, saying.
  34. Cross References
    2 Kings 25:23 - 24
    Now when all the captains and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah governor, they came with their men to Gedaliah at Mizpah, namely, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite.
    Jeremiah 40:7 - 9
    When all the captains of the forces in the open country and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land and had committed to him men, women, and children, those of the poorest of the land who had not been taken into exile to Babylon.
  35. Cross References
    Joshua 18:26
    Mizpeh, Chephirah, Mozah.
  36. Cross References
    Jeremiah 41:1 - 2
    In the seventh month, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family, one of the chief officers of the king, came with ten men to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah. As they ate bread together there at Mizpah.
  37. Cross References
    Jeremiah 40:14 - 15
    And said to him, "Do you know that Baalis the king of the Ammonites has sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to take your life?" But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam would not believe them.
  38. Cross References
    Jeremiah 43:4 - 7
    So Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces and all the people did not obey the voice of the Lord, to remain in the land of Judah.
  39. Cross References
    2 Kings 25:27 - 30
    And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison.
    Jeremiah 52:31 - 34
    And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he became king, graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison.
  40. Cross References
    2 Kings 24:12
    And Jehoiachin the king of Judah gave himself up to the king of Babylon, himself and his mother and his servants and his officials and his palace officials. The king of Babylon took him prisoner in the eighth year of his reign
    2 Kings 24:15
    And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon. The king's mother, the king's wives, his officials, and the chief men of the land he took into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.
  41. Cross References
    Genesis 40:13
    In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office, and you shall place Pharaoh's cup in his hand as formerly, when you were his cupbearer.
    Genesis 40:20
    On the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, he made a feast for all his servants and lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants.
  42. Cross References
    2 Samuel 9:7
    And David said to him, "Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.
    2 Samuel 9:13
    So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate always at the king's table. Now he was lame in both his feet.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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