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Tuesday, December 24th, 2024
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2 Kings2Ki 23 2 Kings2Ki 2 Kings2Ki 25

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Babylon Controls Jehoiakim

¹ During Jehoiakim’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded. So Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years, until he turned and rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.² And the LORD sent Chaldean^(a), Aramean, Moabite, and Ammonite raiders against Jehoiakim in order to destroy Judah, according to the word the LORD had spoken through His servants the prophets.³ Surely this happened to Judah at the LORD’s command, to remove them from His presence because of the sins of Manasseh and all that he had done,⁴ and also for the innocent blood he had shed. For he had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the LORD was unwilling to forgive.⁵ As for the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, along with all his accomplishments, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?

Jehoiachin Reigns in Judah

(2 Chronicles 36:9-10)

⁶ And Jehoiakim rested with his fathers, and his son Jehoiachin became king in his place.⁷ Now the king of Egypt did not march out of his land again, because the king of Babylon had taken all his territory, from the Brook of Egypt to the Euphrates River.

⁸ Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother’s name was Nehushta daughter of Elnathan; she was from Jerusalem.⁹ And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, just as his father had done.

Exiles to Babylon

(Lamentations 1:1-22)

¹⁰ At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched up to Jerusalem, and the city came under siege.¹¹ And King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to the city while his servants were besieging it.¹² Jehoiachin king of Judah, his mother, his servants, his commanders, and his officials all surrendered to the king of Babylon. So in the eighth year of Jehoiachin's reign, the king of Babylon took him captive.¹³ As the LORD had declared, Nebuchadnezzar also carried off all the treasures from the house of the LORD and the royal palace, and he cut into pieces all the gold articles that Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD.¹⁴ He carried into exile all Jerusalem—all the commanders and mighty warriors, all the craftsmen and metalsmiths—ten thousand captives in all. Only the poorest people of the land remained.¹⁵ Nebuchadnezzar carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, as well as the king’s mother, his wives, his officials, and the leading men of the land. He took them into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.¹⁶ The king of Babylon also brought into exile to Babylon all seven thousand valiant warriors and a thousand craftsmen and metalsmiths—all strong and fit for battle.¹⁷ Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's uncle, king in his place and changed his name to Zedekiah.

Zedekiah Reigns in Judah

(2 Chronicles 36:11-14; Jeremiah 1:1-3)

¹⁸ Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.¹⁹ And Zedekiah did evil in the sight of the LORD, just as Jehoiakim had done.²⁰ For because of the anger of the LORD, all this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until He finally banished them from His presence. And Zedekiah also rebelled against the king of Babylon.