aZedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was bHamutal the daughter of 1Jeremiah of cLibnah. 2+@Kin 24:18-25:21A different man from the prophet and author of this book.2 Kin 24:18; 2 Chr 36:112 Kin 23:31; 24:18Josh 10:29; 2 Kin 8:22; Is 37:8 2 He did that which was aevil in the sight of the LORD like all that bJehoiakim had done.1 Kin 14:22; 2 Kin 24:19; 2 Chr 36:12Jer 36:30, 31 3 For all this came about in Jerusalem and Judah because of the aanger of the LORD, and in the end He cast them from His presence. And Zedekiah brebelled against the king of Babylon.2 Kin 24:20; Is 3:1, 4, 52 Chr 36:13; Ezek 17:12-16 4 aNow it came about in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem; and they camped against it and built moveable towers and bsiege mounds all around it. Jer 39:1-102 Kin 25:1; Jer 39:1; Ezek 24:1, 2; Zech 8:19Jer 32:24 5 aSo the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 2+@Chr 36:11-132 Kin 25:2 6 In the afourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the bfamine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land.Jer 39:22 Kin 25:3; Is 3:1; Jer 38:9; Ezek 4:16; 5:16; 14:13 7 Then the city was abroken into, and all the bsoldiers fled. They left the city at night as Ezekiel prophesied passing through the gate between the two walls by the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans were call around the city. They fled by way of the Arabah . Ezek 12:122 Kin 25:4; Jer 39:2Jer 39:4-7; 51:32Ezek 33:21 8 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and aovertook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and his entire army was scattered from him.Jer 21:7; 32:4; 34:21; 37:17; 38:23 9 Then they seized the king and abrought him to the king of Babylon at bRiblah in the Syrian land of cHamath on the northern border of Israel, where he pronounced sentence on him.2 Kin 25:6; Jer 32:4; 39:5Num 34:11; Jer 39:5Num 13:21; Josh 13:5 10 The king of Babylon akilled the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; he also killed all the princes of Judah at Riblah.2 Kin 25:7; Jer 22:30; 39:6 11 Then the king of Babylon ablinded Zedekiah, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon and there he put him in prison 1in a mill until the day of his death. Ezek 12:13The Septuagint (Greek translation of the Old Testament) translates this word “mill.” This may imply that the Chaldeans treated Zedekiah in his old age to the same fate Samson suffered when he was a Philistine captive (Judg 16:21).Jer 39:7; Ezek 12:13
12 aNow in the fifth month, on the tenth day, which was the bnineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, cNebuzaradan captain of the guard, who served the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem.2 Kin 25:8-21; Zech 7:5; 8:192 Kin 24:12; 25:8; Jer 52:29Jer 39:9 13 He aburned down the house of the LORD and the bking’s palace and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house or important structure he set on fire.1 Kin 9:8; 2 Kin 25:9; 2 Chr 36:19; Ps 74:6-8; 79:1; Is 64:10, 11; Lam 2:7; Mic 3:12Jer 39:8 14 So all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard abroke down all the walls around Jerusalem.2 Kin 25:10; Neh 1:3 15 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard atook away into exile some of the poorest of the people, those who were left in the city at the time it was captured, along with those bwho deserted to join the king of Babylon during the siege and the rest of the artisans.2 Kin 25:11Jer 39:9 16 But aNebuzaradan the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and farmers.2 Kin 25:12; Jer 39:10; 40:2-6
17 Now the Chaldeans broke into pieces the apillars of bronze which belonged to the house of the LORD, and the bronze bpedestals which supported the ten basins and the enormous bronze cSea, which were in the house of the LORD, and carried all the bronze to Babylon.1 Kin 7:15-22; 2 Kin 25:13; Jer 27:19-22; 52:20-231 Kin 7:27-371 Kin 7:23-26 18 They also took away the apots for carrying away ashes and the shovels and the snuffers and the bowls and the spoons and all the bronze articles used in the temple service.Ex 27:3; 1 Kin 7:40, 45; 2 Kin 25:14 19 The captain of the guard also took away the small abowls and the firepans and the basins and the pots and the lampstands and the incense cups and the bowls for the drink offerings—whatever was made of fine gold and whatever was made of fine silver.1 Kin 7:49, 50; 2 Kin 25:15 20 The two pillars, the one enormous Sea , and 1the twelve bronze bulls under the Sea, and the stands, which King Solomon had made for the house of the LORD—the bronze of all these things was abeyond weighing.King Ahaz had previously removed the twelve bronze bulls (1 Kin 7:25) from under the big basin and had replaced them with a substructure of stone (2 Kin 16:17), but unfortunately he had not put them beyond the reach of the Chaldeans.1 Kin 7:47; 2 Kin 25:16 21 Concerning the pillars, the aheight of each pillar was eighteen cubits , and a line an ornamental molding of twelve cubits went around its bcircumference; it was four fingers thick, and the pillar was hollow.1 Kin 7:15; 2 Kin 25:17; 2 Chr 3:15 22 A acapital of bronze was on top of it. The height of each capital was five cubits , with a lattice-work and bpomegranates around it, all of bronze. The second pillar also, with its pomegranates, was similar to these.1 Kin 7:16; 2 Kin 25:171 Kin 7:20, 42 23 There were ninety-six pomegranates on the sides; and a hundred apomegranates were on the lattice-work all around.1 Kin 7:20
24 Then the captain of the guard took as prisoners aSeraiah the chief priest and bZephaniah the second priest and the three cdoorkeepers.2 Kin 25:18; 1 Chr 6:14; Ezra 7:12 Kin 25:18; Jer 21:1; 29:25, 29; 37:31 Chr 9:19; Jer 35:4 25 He also took out of the city one official who was overseer of the soldiers, and seven of the aking’s advisers who were found in the city, and the scribe of the commander of the army who mustered the people of the land, and sixty men who were still in the city.2 Kin 25:19; Esth 1:14 26 Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and abrought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.2 Kin 25:20 27 Then the king of Babylon astruck them down and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was bled away into exile from its own land.2 Kin 25:21; Ezek 8:11-18Is 6:11, 12; 27:10; 32:13, 14; Jer 13:19; 20:4; 25:9-11; 39:9; Ezek 33:28; Mic 4:10
28 This is the number of people whom aNebuchadnezzar took captive and exiled: in the seventh year, 3,023 Jews;2 Kin 24:2, 3, 12-16; 2 Chr 36:20; Ezra 2:1; Neh 7:6; Dan 1:1-3 29 in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar, he took captive 832 persons from Jerusalem; 30 in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, aNebuzaradan the captain of the Babylonian guard took captive 745 Jewish people; there were 4,600 persons in all.2 Kin 25:11; Jer 39:9
31 aNow it came about in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin also called Coniah and Jeconiah king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, 1bshowed favor to Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. 2+@Kin 25:27-30Lit lifted up the head of.2 Kin 25:27Gen 40:13, 20; Ps 3:3; 27:6 32 aHe spoke kindly to him and gave him a throne above the thrones of the kings who were captives with him in Babylon.2 Kin 25:28 33 Jehoiachin achanged his prison clothes, and he bdined regularly at the king’s table all the days of his life.Gen 41:14, 42; 2 Kin 25:292 Sam 9:7, 13; 1 Kin 2:7 34 And his allowance, a aregular allowance was given to him by the king of Babylon, a daily portion according to his needs until the day of his death, 1all the days of his life.The purpose of these last few words may be to avoid ending the book with the word “death.” The general purpose of the last four verses seems to have been to leave the reader with the comforting thought that even in exile the Lord remembered His people and softened the heart of the conqueror toward David’s descendant. Note also the contrast between Zedekiah, who remained in prison until his death (v 11), and Jehoiachin, who was set free and treated with honor until his death.2 Sam 9:10; 2 Kin 25:30