2 Chronicles 36
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Reign of Jehoahaz
36 The people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah and made him king to succeed his father in Jerusalem.(A) 2 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign; he reigned three months in Jerusalem. 3 Then the king of Egypt deposed him in Jerusalem and laid on the land a tribute of one hundred talents of silver and one talent of gold. 4 The king of Egypt made his brother Eliakim king over Judah and Jerusalem and changed his name to Jehoiakim, but Neco took his brother Jehoahaz and carried him to Egypt.
Reign and Captivity of Jehoiakim
5 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign; he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God.(B) 6 Against him King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came up and bound him with fetters to take him to Babylon.(C) 7 Nebuchadnezzar also carried some of the vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon and put them in his palace in Babylon.(D) 8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim and the abominations that he did and what was found against him are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah, and his son Jehoiachin succeeded him.(E)
Reign and Captivity of Jehoiachin
9 Jehoiachin was eight years old when he began to reign; he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.(F) 10 In the spring of the year King Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon, along with the precious vessels of the house of the Lord, and made his brother Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.(G)
Reign of Zedekiah
11 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign; he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem.(H) 12 He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God. He did not humble himself before the prophet Jeremiah who spoke from the mouth of the Lord.(I) 13 He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God; he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord, the God of Israel.(J) 14 All the leading priests and the people also were exceedingly unfaithful, following all the abominations of the nations, and they polluted the house of the Lord that he had consecrated in Jerusalem.
The Fall of Jerusalem
15 The Lord, the God of their ancestors, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place,(K) 16 but they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words, and scoffing at his prophets until the wrath of the Lord against his people became so great that there was no remedy.(L)
17 Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their youths with the sword in the house of their sanctuary and had no compassion on young man or young woman, the aged or the feeble; he gave them all into his hand.(M) 18 All the vessels of the house of God, large and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king and of his officials, all these he brought to Babylon.(N) 19 They burned the house of God, broke down the wall of Jerusalem, burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all its precious vessels.(O) 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,(P) 21 to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had made up for its Sabbaths. All the days that it lay desolate it kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years.(Q)
Cyrus Proclaims Liberty for the Exiles
22 In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also in writing, saying:(R) 23 “Thus says King Cyrus of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Let any of those among you who are of his people—may the Lord their God be with them!—go up.”(S)
2 Chronicles 36
International Standard Version
Jehoahaz Becomes King(A)
36 After this, the people of the land installed Josiah’s son Jehoahaz in Jerusalem as king to take his father’s place. 2 Jehoahaz was 23 years old when he became king, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem, 3 after which the king of Egypt dethroned him and imposed a fine on the land of 100 talents[a] of silver and one talent[b] of gold. 4 King Neco of Egypt installed Jehoahaz’s[c] brother Eliakim as king over Judah and Jerusalem, changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim, and took his brother Joahaz back to Egypt.
Jehoiakim’s Reign; Nebuchadnezzar’s First Capture of Jerusalem
5 Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem, but he practiced what the Lord his God considered to be evil. 6 As a result, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon attacked him, bound him in bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon. 7 Nebuchadnezzar also took articles from the Lord’s Temple to Babylon and placed them in his temple in Babylon. 8 The rest of Jehoiakim’s accomplishments—along with the detestable things that he did that were recorded in his disfavor—are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. His son Jehoiachin became king to replace him.
Jechoiachin’s Reign; Nebuchadnezzar’s Second Capture of Jerusalem
9 Jehoiachin was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned for three months and ten days in Jerusalem, all the while doing what the Lord considered to be evil. 10 At the beginning of the next year, King Nebuchadnezzar sent for him and brought him to Babylon, along with valuable articles from the Lord’s Temple, and he installed Jehoiachin’s relative Zedekiah as king over Judah and Jerusalem.
Zedekiah Rules in Judah(B)
11 Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. 12 He practiced what the Lord his God considered to be evil and never humbled himself before Jeremiah the prophet who spoke for the Lord. 13 Zedekiah rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear allegiance in the name of[d] God. Instead, he stiffened his resolve,[e] and hardened his heart, and would not return to the Lord God of Israel.
Nebuchadnezzar’s Third Capture of Jerusalem(C)
14 Meanwhile, all the officials who supervised the priests and the people remained unfaithful, following the detestable example of the surrounding nations. They polluted the Lord’s Temple that he had consecrated in Jerusalem. 15 The Lord God of their ancestors pleaded with them time and again through his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on the place of his residence, 16 but they mocked God’s messengers, despised his words, and scoffed at his prophets, until there was no remedy for the wrath of the Lord that arose to punish[f] his people. 17 Therefore he brought up the king of the Chaldeans against them, who executed their young men in the holy Temple, showing no compassion on young man or young virgin, adult men or the aged. God gave them all into the king’s control, 18 who took back to Babylon every article in God’s Temple, whether large or small, including the treasuries of the Lord’s Temple, the king’s assets, and those of his officers. 19 After this, they set fire to God’s Temple, demolished the wall around Jerusalem, burned all of its fortified buildings, and destroyed everything of value. 20 Nebuchadnezzar[g] carried off to Babylon those who survived the executions, and they served him and his descendants until the kingdom of Persia came to power. 21 All of this fulfilled what the Lord had predicted through Jeremiah. And so the land enjoyed its Sabbaths, and the length of the land’s desolation lasted until a 70-year long Sabbath had been completed.
An Edict to Rebuild the Temple(D)
22 During the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, in fulfillment of the message from the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord prompted[h] Cyrus, king of Persia, to make this proclamation throughout his entire kingdom, which was also released in written form:
23 An Official Statement
from[i] Cyrus, King of Persia
All of the kingdoms of the earth have been given to me by the Lord God of Heaven, and he specifically charged me to build a temple[j] for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Therefore, who among the Lord’s[k] people trusts in his God? Whoever among this group wishes to do so may travel to Jerusalem.[l]
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 36:3 I.e. about 7,500 pounds; a talent weighed about 75 pounds
- 2 Chronicles 36:3 I.e. about 75 pounds; a talent weighed about 75 pounds
- 2 Chronicles 36:4 Lit. his
- 2 Chronicles 36:13 The Heb. lacks allegiance in the name of
- 2 Chronicles 36:13 Lit. neck
- 2 Chronicles 36:16 Lit. arose against
- 2 Chronicles 36:20 Lit. He
- 2 Chronicles 36:22 Lit. Lord stirred up the spirit of
- 2 Chronicles 36:23 Lit. Thus says
- 2 Chronicles 36:23 Or house
- 2 Chronicles 36:23 Lit. among all of his
- 2 Chronicles 36:23 The Heb. lacks to Jerusalem
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