Babylon Controls Jehoiakim 1 UST While Jehoiakim was ruling Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon led his army to invade Judah.{ They defeated the Judean army, and as a result, Jehoiakim became his subject king}. But after three years, Jehoiakim rebelled{ and depended on Egypt again}. BSB BSB: 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 UST Then Yahweh allowed Chaldean{ that is, Babylonian}, Aramean, Moabite, and Ammonite raiders to come into the land of Judah and steal the people’ s crops and valuable possessions. Yahweh had said through his prophets that he would punish the Judeans, and that is just what happened. BSB BSB: And the LORD sent Chaldean, Aramean, Moabite, and Ammonite raiders against Jehoiakim in order to destroy Judah, according to the word that the LORD had spoken through His servants the prophets.
3 UST These things happened to the people of Judah because Yahweh had decreed that they would. He had decided to allow an enemy to take the people of Judah away to a foreign country because of the many sins that King Manasseh had committed. BSB BSB: 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 UST Manasseh had also had his soldiers kill very many innocent people throughout the city of Jerusalem. Yahweh would not forgive that. BSB BSB: 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 UST The book in which the kings of Judah recorded what happened during their reigns describes further things that Jehoiakim did. BSB BSB: 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 UST When Jehoiakim died, his son Jehoiachin became the next king. BSB BSB: And Jehoiakim rested with his fathers, and his son Jehoiachin reigned in his place.
7 UST The king of Babylon led his soldiers to conquer the whole area that the Egyptians had formerly controlled, from the brook at the boundary of Egypt to the Euphrates River. After that, the king of Egypt did not lead his soldiers anywhere outside of his country. BSB BSB: 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 UST Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became the king of Judah. He ruled in Jerusalem for only three months. His mother was Nehushta daughter of Elnathan. She was from the city of Jerusalem. BSB BSB: 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 UST Jehoiachin did many things that Yahweh had told the Israelites were evil, just as his father had done. BSB BSB: And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, just as his father had done.
The Captivity of Jerusalem (Lamentations 1:1–22)
11 UST While they were still doing that, Nebuchadnezzar himself came to the city{ with even more of his soldiers}. BSB BSB: And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to the city while his servants were besieging it.
12 UST Then King Jehoiachin and his mother, advisors, military officers, and palace officials all surrendered to King Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar had been king for eight years when he captured Jehoiachin. BSB BSB: 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 his reign, the king of Babylon took him captive.
13 UST Just as Yahweh had said would happen, Nebuchadnezzar’ s soldiers seized everything that was in the storerooms of Yahweh’ s temple and the king’ s palace. They also stripped off all the gold with which King Solomon’ s workers had overlaid surfaces and furniture in the temple. BSB BSB: 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 UST They forced 10, 000 people to leave Jerusalem and go to Babylon. These people included the military officers and the wealthy Judeans. They also included the skilled workers and the metalworkers. The Babylonians left only the poorest people in Judah. BSB BSB: He carried into exile all Jerusalem—all the commanders and mighty men of valor, all the craftsmen and metalsmiths—ten thousand captives in all. Only the poorest people of the land remained.
15 UST They took King Jehoiachin away to Babylon. They also took the queen mother, Jehoiachin’ s wives, his royal officials, and many other prominent Judeans. They made them all leave Jerusalem and go to Babylon. BSB BSB: 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 UST In total, they took to Babylon 7, 000 wealthy people, 1, 000 skilled workers and metalworkers{, and 2, 000 royal and noble people}. In that way, Nebuchadnezzar removed from Judah everyone who could have made a rebellion against him. BSB BSB: The king of Babylon also brought into exile to Babylon all seven thousand men of valor and a thousand craftsmen and metalsmiths—all strong and fit for battle.
17 UST Then Nebuchadnezzar appointed Jehoiachin’ s uncle Mattaniah to be the king of Judah instead of him. He changed Mattaniah’ s name to Zedekiah. BSB BSB: 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 52:1–3)
18 UST Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king, and he ruled in Jerusalem for eleven years. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah. She was from the city of Libnah. BSB BSB: 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 UST Zedekiah did many things that Yahweh had told the Israelites were evil, just as{ his older brother} Jehoiakim had done. BSB BSB: And Zedekiah did evil in the sight of the LORD, just as Jehoiakim had done.
20 UST Yahweh made these things happen to the people who lived in Jerusalem and other parts of Judah because he was very angry with them. He finally allowed the Babylonians to force them to leave their country. That happened when Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. BSB BSB: 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.
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