Jeremiah 52:12-23
New English Translation
12 On the tenth[a] day of the fifth month,[b] in the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard[c] who served[d] the king of Babylon, arrived in Jerusalem. 13 He burned down the Lord’s temple, the royal palace, and all the houses in Jerusalem, including every large house. 14 The whole Babylonian army that came with the captain of the royal guard tore down the walls that surrounded Jerusalem. 15 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard, took into exile some of the poor,[e] the rest of the people who remained in the city, those who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen. 16 But he[f] left behind some of the poor[g] and gave them fields and vineyards.
17 The Babylonians broke the two bronze pillars in the temple of the Lord, as well as the movable stands and the large bronze basin called “The Sea.”[h] They took all the bronze to Babylon. 18 They also took the pots, shovels,[i] trimming shears,[j] basins, pans, and all the bronze utensils used by the priests.[k] 19 The captain of the royal guard took the gold and silver bowls, censers,[l] basins, pots, lampstands, pans, and vessels.[m] 20 The bronze of the items that King Solomon made for the Lord’s temple (including the two pillars, the large bronze basin called “The Sea,” the twelve bronze bulls under “The Sea,” and the movable stands[n]) was too heavy to be weighed. 21 Each of the pillars was about 27 feet[o] high, about 18 feet[p] in circumference, three inches[q] thick, and hollow. 22 The bronze top of one pillar was about 7½ feet[r] high and had bronze latticework and pomegranate-shaped ornaments all around it. The second pillar with its pomegranate-shaped ornaments was like it. 23 There were 96 pomegranate-shaped ornaments on the sides; in all there were 100 pomegranate-shaped ornaments over the latticework that went around it.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Jeremiah 52:12 tn The parallel account in 2 Kgs 25:8 has “seventh.”
- Jeremiah 52:12 sn The tenth day of the month would have been August 17, 586 b.c. in modern reckoning.
- Jeremiah 52:12 tn For the meaning of this phrase see BDB 371 s.v. טַבָּח 2 and compare the usage in Gen 39:1.
- Jeremiah 52:12 tn Heb “stood before.”
- Jeremiah 52:15 tn Heb “poor of the people.”
- Jeremiah 52:16 tn Heb “Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard.” However, the subject is clear from the preceding, and modern English style would normally avoid repeating the proper name and title.
- Jeremiah 52:16 tn Heb “poor of the land.”
- Jeremiah 52:17 sn For discussion of the items listed here, see the study notes at Jer 27:19.
- Jeremiah 52:18 sn These shovels were used to clean the altar.
- Jeremiah 52:18 sn These trimming shears were used to trim the wicks of the lamps.
- Jeremiah 52:18 tn Heb “with which they served (or “fulfilled their duty”).”
- Jeremiah 52:19 sn The censers held the embers used for the incense offerings.
- Jeremiah 52:19 sn These vessels were used for drink offerings.
- Jeremiah 52:20 tc The translation follows the LXX (Greek version), which reflects the description in 1 Kgs 7:25-26. The Hebrew text reads, “the twelve bronze bulls under the movable stands.” הַיָּם (hayyam, “The Sea”) has been accidentally omitted by homoioarcton; note that the following form, הַמְּכֹנוֹת (hammekhonot, “the movable stands”), also begins with the article.
- Jeremiah 52:21 tn Heb “18 cubits.” A “cubit” was a unit of measure, approximately equivalent to a foot and a half.
- Jeremiah 52:21 tn Heb “12 cubits.” A “cubit” was a unit of measure, approximately equivalent to a foot and a half.
- Jeremiah 52:21 tn Heb “four fingers.”
- Jeremiah 52:22 tn Heb “5 cubits.” A “cubit” was a unit of measure, approximately equivalent to a foot and a half.
Jeremiah 52:12-23
Christian Standard Bible
12 On the tenth day of the fifth month—which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guards, entered Jerusalem as the representative of[a] the king of Babylon. 13 He burned the Lord’s temple, the king’s palace, all the houses of Jerusalem; he burned down all the great houses. 14 The whole Chaldean army with the captain of the guards tore down all the walls surrounding Jerusalem.(A) 15 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guards, deported some of the poorest of the people, as well as the rest of the people who remained in the city, the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen. 16 But Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guards, left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and farmers.(B)
17 Now the Chaldeans broke into pieces the bronze pillars for the Lord’s temple and the water carts and the bronze basin[b] that were in the Lord’s temple,(C) and they carried all the bronze to Babylon. 18 They also took the pots, shovels, wick trimmers, sprinkling basins, dishes, and all the bronze articles used in the temple service. 19 The captain of the guards took away the bowls, firepans, sprinkling basins, pots, lampstands, pans, and drink offering bowls(D)—whatever was gold or silver.
20 As for the two pillars, the one basin, with the twelve bronze oxen under it, and the water carts[c] that King Solomon had made for the Lord’s temple, the weight of the bronze of all these articles was beyond measure. 21 One pillar was 27 feet[d] tall, had a circumference of 18 feet,[e] was hollow—four fingers thick— 22 and had a bronze capital on top of it.(E) One capital, encircled by bronze grating and pomegranates, stood 7½ feet[f] high. The second pillar was the same, with pomegranates. 23 Each capital had ninety-six pomegranates all around it. All the pomegranates around the grating numbered one hundred.
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