The King of Babylon Attacks Jerusalem
v1 King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon marched out with his whole army. He marched towards Jerusalem to attack it. He did that in the 9th year of Zedekiah’s rule. It was on the 10th day of the 10th month. Nebuchadnezzar camped outside the city and he surrounded it with his army. His army prepared to attack the city. v2 His army surrounded Jerusalem city. Nobody could come into it and nobody could go out. That situation lasted until the 11th year of King Zedekiah’s rule.
v3 By the 9th day of the 4th month, no food remained there. So the people in the city were very hungry. v4 Then the enemies broke through the city’s walls. Although the army from Babylon had surrounded the city, the king and the soldiers in Judah’s army escaped. They escaped at night through the king’s gardens. They went through the gate that connected the 2 walls. They ran in the direction of the Jordan valley. v5 The soldiers from Babylon chased after the king. They captured him on the plains near Jericho. All his soldiers ran away.
v6 Zedekiah’s enemies took him as a prisoner. They brought him to Babylon’s king, who was at Riblah. Nebuchadnezzar declared how he would punish Zedekiah. v7 Zedekiah had to watch as the soldiers from Babylon killed his sons. Then the soldiers took out his eyes. They bound Zedekiah with metal chains. Then they took him to Babylon.
Commentary
The king of Babylon surrounded Jerusalem city with his army. Nobody could go into the city and nobody could go out. That situation lasted for 2 years. At first, Babylon’s army had gone away again, because they were afraid of Egypt’s army. But they soon came back.
In the end, there was no food in the city. The soldiers that attacked the city managed to make a hole in the wall. Then they got into the city.
Judah’s king and his soldiers escaped through a secret passage. However, the army from Babylon captured the king. His soldiers ran away.
The king received an awful punishment for his rebellion. He saw the soldiers from Babylon kill his sons. That was the last thing that he saw. Immediately afterward, the soldiers pulled out his eyes and they took him to Babylon.
Jeremiah had said that people would take Zedekiah to Babylon. He had said that Zedekiah would see the king of Babylon (Jeremiah 34:3). Ezekiel had prophesied that Judah’s king would escape through a hole in the wall. Then people would capture the king and they would take him to Babylon city. Ezekiel had also said that the king would not see Babylon (Ezekiel 12:12-13). Jeremiah told King Zedekiah not to fight against the army from Babylon (Jeremiah 38:14-28). If the king had followed Jeremiah’s advice, then those things would not have happened. The king’s enemies would not have destroyed Jerusalem. But Zedekiah was too afraid to do what Jeremiah had advised.
In the end, God will definitely punish sin. It is foolish to imagine that anyone can avoid that punishment. Hebrews 10:26-27 warns us about this matter. ‘If we sin on purpose, no sacrifice can take away sins. Then the only thing that we can do is this. We can only wait in fear for the Judgment.’ However, it is also important to realize that God wants to forgive us. Jesus suffered the punishment for our sins when he died. But we must invite him into our lives if we want God to forgive us. We must repent and we must trust him. Otherwise, we will definitely suffer that punishment. We cannot avoid it.
The End of the Kingdom Called Judah
v8 It was the 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s rule as Babylon’s king. On the 7th day of the 5th month, Nebuzaradan came. He was an official of the king of Babylon. Nebuzaradan was the leader of the guards. He came to Jerusalem. v9 Nebuzaradan started fires in the Lord’s temple and in the royal palace. And he started fires in all the houses in Jerusalem. He burned down every important building. v10 Babylon’s whole army, which Nebuzaradan commanded, broke down the walls round Jerusalem.
v11 Nebuzaradan, the leader of the guards, took the people that remained in the city. He took them away from their country as a punishment. He also took away the people who had not been loyal to Judah. They had supported the king of Babylon. And Nebuzaradan also took away the rest of the people. v12 But he left some of the poorest people behind. They worked in the fields. And they produced grapes.
v13 The soldiers from Babylon broke up the columns that people had made out of bronze (a brown metal). They broke the carts in pieces. And they broke up the great basin that people had made out of bronze. Those things were in the Lord’s temple. The soldiers took the bronze to Babylon. v14 They took away the pots and spades. They also took the tools that people used to look after the lamps. The soldiers took the large spoons that people used to hold incense. And they took all the bronze objects that the priests used in the temple. v15 The leader of the guards took away everything that people had made out of gold or silver. That included the dishes that people used to burn incense. It also included the bowls.
v16 The bronze (a brown metal) from the 2 columns, the great basin, and the carts were too heavy to weigh. Solomon had made them for the Lord’s temple. v17 Each column was 27 feet high. The top of one column was 4 and a half feet high. People had made the top out of bronze. All round it, they had made a design that showed chains and pomegranates (a type of fruit). They had made those of bronze. The other column, with its design of chains, was the same.
Commentary
A month after Babylon’s army had entered Jerusalem, their leader Nebuzaradan burned down the temple. He also destroyed the palace and the important houses. His soldiers pulled down the city’s walls. They took most people as prisoners to Babylon. They left only the poorest people in Judah in order to cultivate the land. The soldiers from Babylon broke up everything in the temple that people had made out of bronze (a brown metal). They took it all to Babylon. They also took all the pots and tools that belonged to the temple. Jeremiah had warned Zedekiah that the enemy would burn down the city (Jeremiah 38:23).
The Chief Priest Taken As Prisoner
v18 Nebuzaradan, the leader of the guards, took Seraiah the chief priest as a prisoner. Nebuzaradan also took Zephaniah, the next priest in rank, as a prisoner. And he took the three men who guarded the doors of the temple as prisoners. v19 Nebuzaradan took the leader of Judah’s army. And he took 5 men that gave advice to Judah’s king. He also took the secretary. And he took 60 of the secretary’s men. The secretary had the authority to make people join the army. All these men were still in Jerusalem when Nebuzaradan found them. v20 Nebuzaradan, the leader of the guards, captured them all. He brought all those people to Babylon’s king at Riblah. v21 The king killed them as a punishment at Riblah. That is in the region called Hamath. So the people in Judah left their country as prisoners.
Commentary
Nebuzaradan, the leader of the guards, took some priests as prisoners. And he also took some leaders of Judah’s army. The king killed them all as a punishment. That probably happened at the same time as Zedekiah received his punishment.
These awful events were a terrible shock for the people from Judah. They had imagined that the Lord would protect Jerusalem. His temple was there. So they said that no enemy could ever destroy the city (Jeremiah 7:4). Jeremiah had warned them that they would lose the Lord’s protection because of their evil deeds (Jeremiah 7:5-11). But they refused to repent. Instead, they continued their wicked behavior.
Jesus warned his friends that people would again destroy the temple (Luke 21:5-6). He even repeated the same words that Jeremiah had used (Mark 11:17 and Jeremiah 7:11). We must not trust in things or places, as a superstition. Instead, we must trust in Jesus and we must obey his commands.
The Book of Lamentations is a very sad song that someone (perhaps Jeremiah) wrote at this time. It describes the cruel actions of the army from Babylon, and it describes the terrible state of Jerusalem. The situation of the inhabitants of Jerusalem was completely hopeless. But the author of the Book of Lamentations was still able to write about hope (Lamentations 3:21-25). Even in those terrible circumstances, he was trusting God.
Gedaliah to Control Judah
v22 Babylon’s king, Nebuchadnezzar, appointed Gedaliah to control Judah. Gedaliah was Ahikam’s son and he was also Shaphan’s grandson. Gedaliah had control over all those people that the king had left behind in Judah. v23 The officers and men in Judah’s army heard that the king had appointed Gedaliah to govern Judah. So they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah. They included Nethaniah’s son Ishmael and Kareah’s son Johanan. In addition, there was Seraiah. He was the son of Tanhumeth, who was from Netophah. And there was Jaazaniah, the son of the man from Maacah. Their men came as well. v24 Gedaliah made this promise to them and to their men: ‘You do not need to be afraid of the officials from Babylon. Live in this country and serve the king of Babylon. Then everything will be all right.’
v25 However, in the 7th month Ishmael went to Mizpah. He took 10 men with him. Ishmael was the son of Nethaniah, who was Elishama’s son. Ishmael was a member of the royal family. He killed Gedaliah. And he killed the men from Judah and Babylon that were with Gedaliah. v26 Then all the people ran away, including the leaders of Judah’s army. Rich and poor people alike all ran away. They all went to Egypt. They were afraid of the people from Babylon.
Commentary
The king of Babylon made Gedaliah the ruler of Judah. Gedaliah was a good man. His father Ahikam had protected Jeremiah from death (Jeremiah 26:24). Gedaliah lived at Mizpah. Those people that had run away from Zedekiah returned. They accepted Gedaliah’s protection. Gedaliah advised them to obey the king of Babylon. Then everything would be all right. (Jeremiah had also given that message to the people.)
However, Ishmael, who was a member of the royal family, opposed Gedaliah. He and 10 other men killed Gedaliah. And they killed those people that were with him. Then Johanan, another officer in Judah’s army, opposed Ishmael. Ishmael escaped into the country called Ammon.
Afterwards, all the people who were still in Judah became very afraid. They were worrying what the king of Babylon’s reaction would be. So they all ran away to Egypt. They took Jeremiah with them (Jeremiah 43:6), although he had told them not to go there (Jeremiah chapter 42). In Deuteronomy 28:68, God had warned his people. He would send them back to Egypt if they did not obey his laws.
In Egypt, the people from Judah thought that they would receive protection. They imagined that the king of Babylon could not attack them there. But actually, the king of Babylon would defeat the king of Egypt soon afterwards (Jeremiah 44:30). Hardly any of this group of people ever returned to Judah. They suffered greatly in Egypt (Jeremiah 44:27-28).
King of Babylon
v27 When Evil-Merodach became king of Babylon, he freed Judah’s king Jehoiachin from prison. That was during the 37th year after Jehoiachin had to leave his own country. Evil-Merodach freed him on the 27th day of the 12th month. v28 He was kind to Jehoiachin. There were other kings with Evil-Merodach in Babylon. But he gave a higher rank to Jehoiachin than he gave to them. v29 So Jehoiachin did not continue to wear a prisoner’s clothes. He ate at the king’s table. He did that for the rest of his life. v30 The king gave a regular amount of food to Jehoiachin each day. He gave it all the time that Jehoiachin lived.
Commentary
After Nebuchadnezzar’s death, Evil-Merodach became king of Babylon. Evil-Merodach allowed Jehoiachin to leave prison. Jehoiachin was now 55 years old. He had been in prison for 37 years. Evil-Merodach gave freedom to him. And he gave a higher rank to Jehoiachin than he gave to the other kings there. Jehoiachin did not have to wear a prisoner’s clothes. The king gave food to him regularly.
So this book ends with a message that gives hope. The Jews’ king became free. That event would remind them about God’s promises to them. David’s family (Judah’s royal family) would not disappear completely. That family was away from its country as a punishment. But that family would continue to exist. There was the hope that, in the future, the people would be free again. They would be able to return to their own country. God’s promise to David remained true (2 Samuel 7:10-16). And there would again be a king from David’s family: Jesus Christ (Acts 2:29-36).
Christians’ hopes depend on the fact that Jesus became alive after death. He said this. ‘Because I live, you will live also’ (John 14:19). The Jews had the hope that they would return to their own country. Christians have the hope that they will go to heaven. This is not an uncertain hope. God always does the things that he has promised to do (2 Corinthians 1:20; 1 Kings 8:56).
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