Jeremiah 52
Christian Standard Bible
The Fall of Jerusalem
52 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah. 2 Zedekiah did what was evil in the Lord’s sight just as Jehoiakim had done.(A) 3 Because of the Lord’s anger, it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that he finally banished them from his presence. Then Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.(B)
4 In the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon advanced against Jerusalem with his entire army. They laid siege to the city and built a siege wall against it all around. 5 The city was under siege until King Zedekiah’s eleventh year.
6 By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that the common people had no food. 7 Then the city was broken into, and all the warriors fled. They left the city at night by way of the city gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans surrounded the city. They made their way along the route to the Arabah.(C) 8 The Chaldean army pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. Zedekiah’s entire army left him and scattered. 9 The Chaldeans seized the king and brought him to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he passed sentence on him.
10 At Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered Zedekiah’s sons before his eyes, and he also slaughtered the Judean commanders. 11 Then he blinded Zedekiah and bound him with bronze chains. The king of Babylon brought Zedekiah to Babylon, where he kept him in custody[a] until his dying day.(D)
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[b] 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.(E) 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.(F)
17 Now the Chaldeans broke into pieces the bronze pillars for the Lord’s temple and the water carts and the bronze basin[c] that were in the Lord’s temple,(G) 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(H)—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[d] 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[e] tall, had a circumference of 18 feet,[f] was hollow—four fingers thick— 22 and had a bronze capital on top of it.(I) One capital, encircled by bronze grating and pomegranates, stood 7½ feet[g] 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.
24 The captain of the guards also took away Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest of the second rank, and the three doorkeepers. 25 From the city he took a court official[h] who had been appointed over the warriors; seven trusted royal aides[i] found in the city; the secretary of the commander of the army, who enlisted the people of the land for military duty; and sixty men from the common people[j] who were found within the city. 26 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guards, took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 27 The king of Babylon put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah went into exile from its land.(J)
28 These are the people Nebuchadnezzar deported:(K) in the seventh year, 3,023 Jews; 29 in his eighteenth year,[k] 832 people from Jerusalem; 30 in Nebuchadnezzar’s twenty-third year, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guards, deported 745 Jews. Altogether, 4,600 people were deported.
Jehoiachin Pardoned
31 On the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth month of the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Judah’s King Jehoiachin, King Evil-merodach of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, pardoned King Jehoiachin of Judah and released him from prison. 32 He spoke kindly to him and set his throne above the thrones of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 33 So Jehoiachin changed his prison clothes, and he dined regularly in the presence of the king of Babylon for the rest of his life. 34 As for his allowance, a regular allowance was given to him by the king of Babylon, a portion for each day until the day of his death, for the rest of his life.(L)
Footnotes
- 52:11 Lit in a house of guards
- 52:12 Lit Jerusalem; he stood before
- 52:17 Lit sea
- 52:20 LXX, Syr; MT reads oxen under the water carts
- 52:21 Lit 18 cubits
- 52:21 Lit 12 cubits
- 52:22 Lit five cubits
- 52:25 Or a eunuch
- 52:25 Lit seven men who look on the king’s face
- 52:25 Lit the people of the land
- 52:29 Some Hb mss, Syr add he deported
Jeremiah 52
New King James Version
The Fall of Jerusalem Reviewed(A)
52 Zedekiah was (B)twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of (C)Libnah. 2 He also did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. 3 For because of the anger of the Lord this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, till He finally cast them out from His presence. Then Zedekiah (D)rebelled against the king of Babylon.
4 Now it came to pass in the (E)ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and encamped against it; and they built a siege wall against it all around. 5 So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 6 By the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the famine had become so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 7 Then the city wall was broken through, and all the men of war fled and went out of the city at night by way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king’s garden, even though the Chaldeans were near the city all around. And they went by way of the [a]plain.
8 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. All his army was scattered from him. 9 (F)So they took the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he pronounced judgment on him. 10 (G)Then the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. And he killed all the princes of Judah in Riblah. 11 He also (H)put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him in [b]bronze fetters, took him to Babylon, and put him in prison till the day of his death.
The Temple and City Plundered and Burned
12 (I)Now in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month ((J)which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), (K)Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, who served the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 13 He burned the house of the Lord and the king’s house; all the houses of Jerusalem, that is, all the houses of the great, he burned with fire. 14 And all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard broke down all the walls of Jerusalem all around. 15 (L)Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive some of the poor people, the rest of the people who remained in the city, the defectors who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen. 16 But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left some of the poor of the land as vinedressers and farmers.
17 (M)The (N)bronze pillars that were in the house of the Lord, and the carts and the bronze Sea that were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces, and carried all their bronze to Babylon. 18 They also took away (O)the pots, the shovels, the trimmers, the [c]bowls, the spoons, and all the bronze utensils with which the priests ministered. 19 The basins, the firepans, the bowls, the pots, the lampstands, the spoons, and the cups, whatever was solid gold and whatever was solid silver, the captain of the guard took away. 20 The two pillars, one Sea, the twelve bronze bulls which were under it, and the carts, which King Solomon had made for the house of the Lord—(P)the bronze of all these articles was beyond measure. 21 Now concerning the (Q)pillars: the height of one pillar was eighteen [d]cubits, a measuring line of twelve cubits could measure its circumference, and its thickness was [e]four fingers; it was hollow. 22 A capital of bronze was on it; and the height of one capital was five cubits, with a network and pomegranates all around the capital, all of bronze. The second pillar, with pomegranates was the same. 23 There were ninety-six pomegranates on the sides; (R)all the pomegranates, all around on the network, were one hundred.
The People Taken Captive to Babylonia
24 (S)The captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, (T)Zephaniah the second priest, and the three doorkeepers. 25 He also took out of the city an [f]officer who had charge of the men of war, seven men of the king’s close associates who were found in the city, the principal scribe of the army who mustered the people of the land, and sixty men of the people of the land who were found in the midst of the city. 26 And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took these and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 27 Then the king of Babylon struck them and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. Thus Judah was carried away captive from its own land.
28 (U)These are the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: (V)in the seventh year, (W)three thousand and twenty-three Jews; 29 (X)in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem eight hundred and thirty-two persons; 30 in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred and forty-five persons. All the persons were four thousand six hundred.
Jehoiachin Released from Prison(Y)
31 (Z)Now it came to pass in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, that [g]Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, (AA)lifted[h] up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. 32 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a more prominent seat than those of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 33 So [i]Jehoiachin changed from his prison garments, (AB)and he ate bread regularly before the king all the days of his life. 34 And as for his provisions, there was a regular ration given him by the king of Babylon, a portion for each day until the day of his death, all the days of his life.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 52:7 Or Arabah; the Jordan Valley
- Jeremiah 52:11 shackles
- Jeremiah 52:18 basins
- Jeremiah 52:21 18 inches each
- Jeremiah 52:21 3 inches
- Jeremiah 52:25 Lit. eunuch
- Jeremiah 52:31 Or Awil-Marduk; lit. The Man of Marduk
- Jeremiah 52:31 Showed favor to
- Jeremiah 52:33 Lit. he
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
