2 Kings 24:20-25:7
Holman Christian Standard Bible
20 Because of the Lord’s anger,(A) it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He finally banished them from His presence.(B) Then, Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.(C)
Nebuchadnezzar’s Siege of Jerusalem
25 In the ninth year(D) of Zedekiah’s reign,(E) on the tenth day of the tenth month, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon advanced against Jerusalem with his entire army.(F) They laid siege to the city and built a siege wall against it all around.(G) 2 The city was under siege until King Zedekiah’s eleventh year.
3 By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that the people of the land had no food.(H) 4 Then the city was broken into,(I) and all the warriors fled(J) by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden,(K) even though the Chaldeans surrounded the city. As the king made his way along the route to the Arabah,(L) 5 the Chaldean army pursued him and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. Zedekiah’s entire army was scattered from him.(M) 6 The Chaldeans seized the king(N) and brought him up to the king of Babylon(O) at Riblah,(P) and they passed sentence on him. 7 They slaughtered Zedekiah’s sons before his eyes. Finally, the king of Babylon blinded Zedekiah, bound him in bronze chains, and took him to Babylon.(Q)
2 Kings 24:20-25:7
New Living Translation
20 These things happened because of the Lord’s anger against the people of Jerusalem and Judah, until he finally banished them from his presence and sent them into exile.
The Fall of Jerusalem
Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
25 So on January 15,[a] during the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon led his entire army against Jerusalem. They surrounded the city and built siege ramps against its walls. 2 Jerusalem was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah’s reign.
3 By July 18 in the eleventh year of Zedekiah’s reign,[b] the famine in the city had become very severe, and the last of the food was entirely gone. 4 Then a section of the city wall was broken down. Since the city was surrounded by the Babylonians,[c] the soldiers waited for nightfall and escaped[d] through the gate between the two walls behind the king’s garden. Then they headed toward the Jordan Valley.[e]
5 But the Babylonian[f] troops chased the king and overtook him on the plains of Jericho, for his men had all deserted him and scattered. 6 They captured the king and took him to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where they pronounced judgment upon Zedekiah. 7 They made Zedekiah watch as they slaughtered his sons. Then they gouged out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon.
Footnotes
- 25:1 Hebrew on the tenth day of the tenth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. A number of events in 2 Kings can be cross-checked with dates in surviving Babylonian records and related accurately to our modern calendar. This day was January 15, 588 B.c.
- 25:3 Hebrew By the ninth day of the [fourth] month [in the eleventh year of Zedekiah’s reign] (compare Jer 39:2; 52:6 and the notes there). This day was July 18, 586 B.c.; also see note on 25:1.
- 25:4a Or the Chaldeans; also in 25:13, 25, 26.
- 25:4b As in Greek version (see also Jer 39:4; 52:7); Hebrew lacks escaped.
- 25:4c Hebrew the Arabah.
- 25:5 Or Chaldean; also in 25:10, 24.
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