2 Kings 25
Lexham English Bible
The Final Invasion of Nebuchadnezzar
25 It happened that in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth of the month, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came, he and his army, against Jerusalem. He encamped against it and built siege works against it all around. 2 So the city came under siege until the eleventh year of the king. 3 In the ninth month, the famine became severe in the city, and there was no food for the people of the land. 4 Then the city was breached, and all of the men of war entered by night by way of the gate between the wall which was by the garden of the king, and the Chaldeans were against the city all around, so he[a] left by the way of the Arabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook him in the Arabah of Jericho, and all of his army scattered from him. 6 So they captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they passed sentence on him.[b] 7 They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; then they blinded the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in bronze fetters and brought him to Babylon.
Jerusalem Is Sacked and the Temple Burned
8 In the fifth month, on the seventh of the month, that is, the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, a commander of the imperial guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 9 He burned the temple of Yahweh, the palace of the king, and all of the houses of Jerusalem; every large house he burned with fire. 10 He and all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the imperial guard tore down the wall of Jerusalem all around. 11 The remainder of the people left in the city, the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the remainder of the multitude, Nebuzaradan the commander of the imperial guard deported.
12 But the poor of the land the commander of the imperial guard left for the vineyards and for tilling.
Plunder Taken by the Chaldeans
13 The bronze pillars which were in the temple[c] of Yahweh, the water carts, and the bronze sea that was in the temple of Yahweh, the Chaldeans broke into pieces and carried their bronze to Babylon. 14 The pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the dishes, and the vessels of bronze with which they served there, they took. 15 The firepans and the basins, whatever was gold, the commander of the imperial guard took for the gold and whatever was silver, for the silver. 16 The two pillars, the one sea, and the water cart which Solomon had made for the temple of Yahweh, there was no weighing to the bronze of all of these vessels. 17 The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits; a bronze capital was on it, with the height of the capital being three cubits. The latticework and pomegranates on the capital all around were bronze, and likewise on the latticework for the second pillar.
18 Then the commander of the imperial guard took Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the second priest, and three of the threshold keepers. 19 From the city he took one court official who was chief officer over the men of war, five men from the king’s council[d] who were found in the city, the secretary of the commander of the army who mustered the people of the land, and sixty men from the people of the land being found in the city. 20 Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21 Then the king of Babylon struck them down and killed them at Riblah in the land of Hamath; thus Judah was removed from its land.
Gedaliah Appointed Governor
22 Now as far as the people left in Judah whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon left behind, he appointed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan over them. 23 When all of the commanders of the troops heard, they and the men, that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah, they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, Johanan the son of Kareah, Seriah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite, they and their men. 24 Gedaliah swore to them and to their men, and he said to them, “You must not be afraid because of the Chaldeans. Settle in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and may it go well with you.” 25 But it happened in the seventh month that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama from the offspring of the kingship came, and ten men with him, and they struck down Gedaliah so that he died with the Judeans and with the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah. 26 Then all the people, from youngest to oldest, and the commanders of the troops, went to Egypt, for they were afraid of the presence of the Chaldeans.
Elderly Jehoiachin Cared for in Babylon
27 It happened in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month on the twenty-seventh of the month, lifted Evil-Merodach king of Babylon in the year that he became king, the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah from the house of imprisonment. 28 He spoke kindly[e] to him, and he gave him a better seat than the seat of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So he changed the clothes of his imprisonment, and he ate food continually in his presence all the days of his life. 30 His allowance was continually given to him from the king, a portion every day[f] all the days of his life.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 25:4 That is, Zedekiah
- 2 Kings 25:6 Literally “they spoke justice with him”
- 2 Kings 25:13 Or “house”
- 2 Kings 25:19 Literally “from those who saw the face of the king”
- 2 Kings 25:28 Literally “good things”
- 2 Kings 25:30 Literally “a thing of day on his day”
2 Kings 25
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 25
1 It was during the ninth year of his reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, that Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and all his army came up against Jerusalem. He camped and made siege-works all around it.[a] 2 The city was under siege until the eleventh year of the reign of King Zedekiah. 3 By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe that there was no food left for the people of the land.
4 There was a breach in the city wall, and all of the warriors fled at night by way of the gate between the two walls by the king’s garden, even though the Chaldeans surrounded the city. They went toward the Arabah.
5 The Chaldean army chased after them and caught up with the king in the plains of Jericho, scattering his entire army. 6 They captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon who was at Riblah where he pronounced his judgment. 7 They killed Zedekiah’s sons before his eyes, and then they put out his eyes, bound him in brass fetters, and carried him off to Babylon.
Destruction of Jerusalem. 8 On the seventh day of the fifth month of the ninth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard and a servant of the king of Babylon, came up to Jerusalem. 9 He burned down the temple of the Lord, the royal palace, all of the buildings of Jerusalem. He burned down every large building. 10 All of the Chaldean army that was with the captain of the guard broke down all of the walls surrounding Jerusalem. 11 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, carried off the rest of the people who remained in the city, those who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the multitude.
12 But the captain of the guard left the poorest of the people who were to be vinedressers and herdsmen.
13 The Chaldeans broke into pieces the bronze pillars in the temple of the Lord and the bronze sea and its base in the temple of the Lord. They carried the bronze off to Babylon. 14 They took away the pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the spoons, and all of the bronze vessels that were used for ministry there. 15 The captain of the guard also took away the censers and the bowls, and everything that was made with gold or silver. 16 One could not even measure the weight of the bronze from all these things: the two pillars, the sea, and its base that were made by Solomon for the temple of the Lord. 17 Each bronze pillar with its capital was eighteen cubits tall. The capital was three cubits high, along with a bronze network and pomegranates upon the capital. The other pillar was identical with its network.
18 The captain of the guard took away Seraiah, the chief priest, Zephaniah, the second priest, as well as three of the doormen. 19 He also took the officer who was in charge of the fighting men out of the city as well as five of the king’s advisors who were caught in the city. He took the scribe assigned to the leader of the army, the one who would muster the people of the land. He also took sixty of the people of the land who were found in the city.
20 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took them and brought them to the king of Babylon in Riblah. 21 The king of Babylon struck them down and killed them in Riblah in the land of Hamath. Thus, Judah was carried away from their land into exile.
22 Gedaliah Governs Judah.[b] As for the rest of the people who had remained in the land of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, appointed Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, over them.
23 When all of the captains of the army (they and their men) heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, they came to Gedaliah in Mizpah. They were Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, Johanan, the son of Kareah, Seraiah, the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah, the son of the Maachathite, and their men.
24 Gedaliah swore to them and to their men, saying to them, “Do not be afraid of the servants of the Chaldeans. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and everything will be all right with you.”
25 But during the seventh month, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, a member of the royal family, came with ten men and struck down Gedaliah. He died along with the Jews and Chaldeans who were with him in Mizpah.
26 All of the people then rose up, the small and the great, and the captains of the army, and they went to Egypt because they were afraid of the Chaldeans.
27 Jehoiachin’s Release from Prison.[c] In the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month, Evil-merodach who had become king that year, released Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, from prison. 28 He spoke kindly to him and he set him upon his throne which was above the thrones of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 He changed his prison clothes, and he ate his meals with him for the rest of his life. 30 He was given a regular allowance from the king, a portion for each day of the rest of his life.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 25:1 For the third time, the Babylonian army invaded Judah, destroying the temple and taking the people captive. Judah, like Israel, was unfaithful to God, who gave them many opportunities to turn back to him.
- 2 Kings 25:22 These painful incidents are told in detail in Jeremiah (Jer 40–42). Judah is now like “a desert that no one can cross” (Jer 9:12), since Babylonia does not introduce new inhabitants as Assyria had done in the case of Israel. But the wintry silence is preparing for the germination of new seed. This will produce a new people, one that has the law written in its heart and that will come to rebuild these ruins (Jer 31:33).
- 2 Kings 25:27 Evil-merodach succeeds his father, Nebuchadnezzar, in 561 B.C. and being a more humane man, takes pity on Jehoiachin, who has been in prison since 597 B.C. His treatment of the vassal king has been brilliantly confirmed by discoveries in 1940 that mention “Jaukinu, king of the land of Judah” as among those who receive supplies from the king’s treasury.
2 Reyes 25
Nueva Versión Internacional (Castilian)
25 En el año noveno del reinado de Sedequías, a los diez días del mes décimo, Nabucodonosor, rey de Babilonia, marchó con todo su ejército y atacó contra Jerusalén. Acampó frente a la ciudad y construyó una rampa de asalto a su alrededor. 2 La ciudad estuvo sitiada hasta el año undécimo del reinado de Sedequías.
3 A los nueve días del mes cuarto,[a] cuando el hambre se agravó en la ciudad, y no había más alimento para el pueblo, 4 se abrió una brecha en el muro de la ciudad, de modo que, aunque los babilonios la tenían cercada, todo el ejército se escapó de noche por la puerta que estaba entre los dos muros, junto al jardín real. Huyeron camino al Arabá,[b] 5 pero el ejército babilonio persiguió a Sedequías hasta alcanzarlo en la llanura de Jericó. Sus soldados se dispersaron, abandonándolo, 6 y los babilonios lo capturaron. Entonces lo llevaron ante el rey de Babilonia, que estaba en Riblá. Allí Sedequías recibió su sentencia. 7 Ante sus propios ojos degollaron a sus hijos, y después le sacaron los ojos, lo ataron con cadenas de bronce y lo llevaron a Babilonia.
8 A los siete días del mes quinto del año diecinueve del reinado de Nabucodonosor, rey de Babilonia, su ministro Nabuzaradán, que era el comandante de la guardia, fue a Jerusalén 9 y le prendió fuego al templo del Señor, al palacio real y a todas las casas de Jerusalén, incluso a todos los edificios importantes. 10 Entonces el ejército babilonio bajo su mando derribó las murallas que rodeaban la ciudad. 11 Nabuzaradán además deportó a la gente que quedaba en la ciudad, es decir, al resto de la muchedumbre y a los que se habían aliado con el rey de Babilonia. 12 Sin embargo, dejó a algunos de los más pobres para que se encargaran de los viñedos y de los campos.
13 Los babilonios quebraron las columnas de bronce, las bases y la fuente[c] de bronce que estaban en el templo del Señor, y se llevaron todo el bronce a Babilonia. 14 También se llevaron las ollas, las tenazas, las despabiladeras, la vajilla y todos los utensilios de bronce que se usaban para el culto. 15 Además, el comandante de la guardia se apoderó de los incensarios y de los tazones, todo lo cual era de oro y de plata.
16 El bronce de las dos columnas, de la fuente y de las bases, que Salomón había hecho para el templo del Señor, era tanto que no se podía pesar. 17 Cada columna medía ocho metros de altura. El capitel de bronce que estaba encima de cada columna medía metro y medio[d] de altura y estaba decorado alrededor con una red y con granadas de bronce. Las dos columnas tenían el mismo adorno.
18 El comandante de la guardia tomó presos a Seraías, sacerdote principal, a Sofonías, sacerdote de segundo rango, y a los tres porteros. 19 De los que quedaban en la ciudad, apresó al oficial encargado de las tropas, a cinco de los servidores personales del rey, al cronista principal del ejército, encargado de reclutar soldados de entre el pueblo, y a sesenta ciudadanos que todavía estaban en la ciudad. 20 Después de apresarlos, Nabuzaradán, comandante de la guardia, se los llevó al rey de Babilonia, que estaba en Riblá. 21 Allí, en el territorio de Jamat, el rey los hizo ejecutar.
Así Judá fue desterrado y llevado cautivo.
22 Nabucodonosor, rey de Babilonia, nombró a Guedalías, hijo de Ajicán y nieto de Safán, para gobernar a la gente que había dejado en Judá. 23 Cuando los oficiales del ejército de Judá y sus tropas se enteraron de que el rey de Babilonia había nombrado gobernador a Guedalías, fueron a ver a este en Mizpa. Los oficiales eran Ismael hijo de Netanías, Johanán hijo de Carea, Seraías hijo de Tanjumet, oriundo de Netofa, y Jazanías, hijo de un hombre de Macá. 24 Guedalías les hizo este juramento a ellos y a sus tropas: «No temáis a los oficiales babilonios. Si vosotros os quedáis en el país y servís al rey de Babilonia, os aseguro que os irá bien».
25 Pero a los siete meses Ismael, hijo de Netanías y nieto de Elisama, que era de la estirpe real, y diez hombres que lo acompañaban, fueron y asesinaron a Guedalías; también mataron a los hombres de Judá y a los babilonios que formaban parte de su séquito en Mizpa. 26 Acto seguido, todos huyeron a Egipto, grandes y pequeños, junto con los oficiales, pues temían a los babilonios.
Liberación del rey Joaquín(A)
27 En el día veintisiete del mes duodécimo del año treinta y siete del exilio de Joaquín, rey de Judá, Evil Merodac, rey de Babilonia, en el año primero de su reinado, sacó a Joaquín de la cárcel. 28 Lo trató amablemente y le dio una posición más alta que la de los otros reyes que estaban con él en Babilonia. 29 Joaquín dejó su ropa de prisionero, y por el resto de su vida comió a la mesa del rey. 30 Además, durante toda su vida Joaquín gozó de una pensión diaria que le proveía el rey de Babilonia.
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