2 Chronicles 36

1 Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz, the son of Josiah, and they appointed him king in place of his father, in Jerusalem.

Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah and made him king in Jerusalem in place of his father.

2 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem.

Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months.

3 Then the king of Egypt, when he had arrived in Jerusalem, removed him, and condemned the land to one hundred talents of silver and one talent of gold.

And the king of Egypt dethroned him in Jerusalem and imposed on Judah a levy of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.

4 And he appointed Eliakim, his brother, as king in his place, over Judah and Jerusalem. And he changed his name to Jehoiakim. Truly, he took Jehoahaz with him, and he led him away to Egypt.

Then Neco king of Egypt made Eliakim brother of Jehoahaz king over Judah and Jerusalem, and he changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But Neco took Eliakim’s brother Jehoahaz and carried him off to Egypt.

5 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. And he did evil before the Lord his God.

Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. And he did evil in the sight of the LORD his God.

6 Nebuchadnezzar, the king of the Chaldeans, ascended against him, and led him bound in chains to Babylon.

Then Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jehoiakim and bound him with bronze shackles to take him to Babylon.

7 And to there, he also took away the vessels of the Lord, and he placed them in his temple.

Nebuchadnezzar also took to Babylon some of the articles from the house of the LORD, and he put them in his temple in Babylon.

8 But the rest of the words of Jehoiakim, and his abominations that he worked, and the things that were found in him, are contained in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. Then his son, Jehoiachin, reigned in his place.

As for the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, the abominations he committed, and all that was found against him, they are indeed written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. And his son Jehoiachin reigned in his place.

9 Jehoiachin was eight years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for three months and ten days in Jerusalem. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord.

Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months and ten days. And he did evil in the sight of the LORD.

10 And when the course of a year had turned, king Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon, carrying away, at the same time, the most precious vessels of the house of the Lord. Truly, he appointed his uncle, Zedekiah, as king over Judah and Jerusalem.

In the spring, King Nebuchadnezzar summoned Jehoiachin and brought him to Babylon, along with the articles of value from the house of the LORD. And he made Jehoiachin’s relative Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.

11 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem.

Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years.

12 And he did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God. And he did not show remorse before the face of the prophet Jeremiah, who was speaking to him from the mouth of the Lord.

And he did evil in the sight of the LORD his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke for the LORD.

13 Also, he withdrew from king Nebuchadnezzar, who had bound him by an oath to God, and he hardened his own neck and his own heart, so that he did not return to the Lord, the God of Israel.

He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God. But Zedekiah stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel.

14 Then too, all the leaders of the priests, with the people, transgressed iniquitously, in accord with all the abominations of the Gentiles. And they polluted the house of the Lord, which he had sanctified to himself in Jerusalem.

Furthermore, all the leaders of the priests and the people multiplied their unfaithful deeds, following all the abominations of the nations, and they defiled the house of the LORD, which He had consecrated in Jerusalem.

15 Then the Lord, the God of their fathers, sent to them, by the hand of his messengers, rising in the night and daily admonishing them. For he was lenient to his people and to his habitation.

Again and again the LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to His people through His messengers because He had compassion on them and on His dwelling place.

16 But they ridiculed the messengers of God, and they gave little weight to his words, and they mocked the prophets, until the fury of the Lord ascended against his people, and there was no remedy.

But they mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against His people was stirred up beyond remedy.

17 For he led over them the king of the Chaldeans. And he put to death their young men by the sword, in the house of his sanctuary. There was no pity for adolescents, nor virgins, nor the elderly, nor even for the disabled. Instead, he delivered them all into his hands.

So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who put their young men to the sword in the sanctuary, sparing neither young men nor young women, neither elderly nor infirm. God gave them all into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar,

18 And all the vessels of the house of Lord, as much the greater as the lesser, and the treasures of the temple, and of the king and the rulers, he carried away to Babylon.

who carried off everything to Babylon—all the articles of the house of God, both large and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD and of the king and his officials.

19 The enemies set fire to the house of God, and they destroyed the wall of Jerusalem. They burned down all the towers. And whatever was precious, they demolished.

Then the Chaldeans set fire to the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem. They burned down all the palaces and destroyed every article of value.

20 If anyone had escaped from the sword, he was led into Babylon. And he served the king and his sons, until the king of Persia would command,

Those who escaped the sword were carried by Nebuchadnezzar into exile in Babylon, and they became servants to him and his sons until the kingdom of Persia came to power.

21 and the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah would be fulfilled, and the land would celebrate her Sabbaths. For during all the days of the desolation, she kept a Sabbath, until the seventy years were completed.

So the land enjoyed its Sabbath rest all the days of the desolation, until seventy years were completed, in fulfillment of the word of the LORD through Jeremiah.

22 Then, in the first year of Cyrus, the king of the Persians, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord, which he had spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah, the Lord stirred up the heart of Cyrus, the king of the Persians, who commanded this to be proclaimed throughout his entire kingdom, and also in writing, saying:

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken through Jeremiah, the LORD stirred the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia to send a proclamation throughout his kingdom and to put it in writing as follows:

23 “Thus says Cyrus, the king of the Persians: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given to me all the kingdoms of the earth. And he has instructed me that I should build for him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judea. Who among you is from his entire people? May the Lord his God be with him, and let him ascend.”

“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, who has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, has appointed me to build a house for Him at Jerusalem in Judah. Whoever among you belongs to His people, may the LORD his God be with him, and may he go up.’”