²⁰ It was because of the Lord’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end he thrust^(A) them from his presence.^(B)

The Fall of Jerusalem^(C)(D)(E)

Now Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

25 So in the ninth^(F) year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar^(G) king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army. He encamped outside the city and built siege works^(H) all around it. ² The city was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.

³ By the ninth day of the fourth^[a] month the famine^(I) in the city had become so severe that there was no food for the people to eat. ⁴ Then the city wall was broken through,^(J) and the whole army fled at night through the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, though the Babylonians^[b] were surrounding^(K) the city. They fled toward the Arabah,^{[c] 5} but the Babylonian^[d] army pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his soldiers were separated from him and scattered,^{(L) 6} and he was captured.^(M)

He was taken to the king of Babylon at Riblah,^(N) where sentence was pronounced on him. ⁷ They killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. Then they put out his eyes, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon.^(O)