2 Kings 24
Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, conquered Judah and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years before rebelling against him. The Lord sent the Chaldeans, Syrians, Moabites, and Ammonites to destroy Judah as punishment for the sins of Manasseh. Jehoiakim's son Jehoiachin succeeded him but reigned for only three months before Nebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem, taking its treasures and leading many of its people, including Jehoiachin, into captivity in Babylon. Zedekiah, Jehoiachin's uncle, was then appointed king by Nebuchadnezzar but also rebelled against him.
1During his days, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, ascended, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years. And again he rebelled against him2And the Lord sent to him the robbers of the Chaldeans, and the robbers of Syria, and the robbers of Moab, and the robbers of the sons of Ammon. And he sent them into Judah, so that they might destroy it, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he had spoken through his servants, the prophets3Then this occurred, by the word of the Lord against Judah, that he took him away from before himself because of all the sins of Manasseh which he did4and because of the innocent blood which he shed, and because he filled Jerusalem with the slaughter of the innocent. And for this reason, the Lord was not willing to be appeased5But the rest of the words of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah? And Jehoiakim slept with his fathers6And Jehoiachin, his son, reigned in his place7And the king of Egypt no longer continued to go out from his own land. For the king of Babylon had taken all that had belonged to the king of Egypt, from the river of Egypt as far as the river Euphrates8Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan, from Jerusalem9And he did evil before the Lord, in accord with all that his father had done10At that time, the servants of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, ascended against Jerusalem. And the city was encircled with fortifications11And Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, went to the city, with his servants, so that he might fight against it12And Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his leaders, and his eunuchs. And the king of Babylon received him, in the eighth year of his reign13And he took from there all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the house of the king. And he cut up all the gold vessels which Solomon, the king of Israel, had made for the temple of the Lord, in accord with the word of the Lord14And he carried away all of Jerusalem, and all the leaders, and all the strong men of the army, ten thousand, into captivity, with every artisan and craftsman. And no one was left behind, except the poor among the people of the land15Also, he carried away Jehoiachin into Babylon, and the mother of the king, and the wives of the king, and his eunuchs. And he led into captivity the judges of the land, from Jerusalem to Babylon16and all the robust men, seven thousand, and the artisans and craftsman, one thousand: all who were strong men and fit for war. And the king of Babylon led them away as captives, into Babylon17And he appointed Mattaniah, his uncle, in his place. And he imposed the name Zedekiah upon him18Zedekiah held twenty-one years of life when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah, from Libnah19And he did evil before the Lord, in accord with all that Jehoiakim had done20For the Lord was angry against Jerusalem and against Judah, until he cast them away from his face. And so Zedekiah withdrew from the king of Babylon
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