Ἱερεμίας 52
1 ὄντος εἰκοστοῦ καὶ ἑνὸς ἔτους Σεδεκιου ἐν τῷ βασιλεύειν αὐτόν καὶ ἕνδεκα ἔτη ἐβασίλευσεν ἐν Ιερουσαλημ καὶ ὄνομα τῇ μητρὶ αὐτοῦ Αμιτααλ θυγάτηρ Ιερεμιου ἐκ Λοβενα
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became the King [of Judah]. He ruled in Jerusalem for eleven years. His mother was Hamutal, the daughter of [a man named] Jeremiah from Libnah [town].
Zedekiah did [many] things that Yahweh says are evil, like [his father] Jehoiakim had done.
[The events that are summarized here happened] because Yahweh was angry with [the people of] Jerusalem and [of other places in] Judah, and finally he (exiled them/forced them to go to other countries) [and said that he did not want to have anything to do with] them any more. Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
4 καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ ἔτει τῷ ἐνάτῳ τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ ἐν μηνὶ τῷ δεκάτῳ δεκάτῃ τοῦ μηνὸς ἦλθεν Ναβουχοδονοσορ βασιλεὺς Βαβυλῶνος καὶ πᾶσα ἡ δύναμις αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ Ιερουσαλημ καὶ περιεχαράκωσαν αὐτὴν καὶ περιῳκοδόμησαν αὐτὴν τετραπέδοις λίθοις κύκλῳ
[So, ] on January 15, when Zedekiah had been ruling for almost nine years, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon led his entire army to attack Jerusalem. They surrounded the city and built dirt ramps up to the top of the city walls [to enable them to attack the city].
5 καὶ ἦλθεν ἡ πόλις εἰς συνοχὴν ἕως ἑνδεκάτου ἔτους τῷ βασιλεῖ Σεδεκια
They continued to surround Jerusalem until Zedekiah had been ruling for almost eleven years.
6 ἐν τῇ ἐνάτῃ τοῦ μηνὸς καὶ ἐστερεώθη ὁ λιμὸς ἐν τῇ πόλει καὶ οὐκ ἦσαν ἄρτοι τῷ λαῷ τῆς γῆς
When Zedekiah had been ruling for almost eleven years, by July 18 of that year, the (famine/lack of food) in the city had become very severe, and there was no [more] food for the people [to eat].
7 καὶ διεκόπη ἡ πόλις καὶ πάντες οἱ ἄνδρες οἱ πολεμισταὶ ἐξῆλθον νυκτὸς κατὰ τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς πύλης ἀνὰ μέσον τοῦ τείχους καὶ τοῦ προτειχίσματος ὃ ἦν κατὰ τὸν κῆπον τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ οἱ Χαλδαῖοι ἐπὶ τῆς πόλεως κύκλῳ καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν ὁδὸν τὴν εἰς Αραβα
Then [the soldiers of Babylonia] broke through [a section of] the city wall, and all the [Israeli] soldiers fled. But because the city was surrounded by soldiers from Babylonia, [Zedekiah and the Israeli] soldiers [waited until] it became dark. Then they left the city through the gate between the two walls behind the king’s garden. Then they ran towards the Jordan River Valley.
8 καὶ κατεδίωξεν ἡ δύναμις τῶν Χαλδαίων ὀπίσω τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ κατέλαβον αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ πέραν Ιεριχω καὶ πάντες οἱ παῖδες αὐτοῦ διεσπάρησαν ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ
But the soldiers of Babylonia pursued King Zedekiah, and they caught up with him on the plains near Jericho. [He was alone because] all his men had deserted him and had scattered.
9 καὶ συνέλαβον τὸν βασιλέα καὶ ἤγαγον αὐτὸν πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα Βαβυλῶνος εἰς Δεβλαθα καὶ ἐλάλησεν αὐτῷ μετὰ κρίσεως
The soldiers of Babylonia took him to the king of Babylon, who was at Riblah in the Hamath [region]. There the king of Babylon told [his soldiers what] they should do to punish Zedekiah.
10 καὶ ἔσφαξεν βασιλεὺς Βαβυλῶνος τοὺς υἱοὺς Σεδεκιου κατ’ ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ καὶ πάντας τοὺς ἄρχοντας Ιουδα ἔσφαξεν ἐν Δεβλαθα
They forced Zedekiah to watch while they killed his sons and all the officials from Judah.
11 καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς Σεδεκιου ἐξετύφλωσεν καὶ ἔδησεν αὐτὸν ἐν πέδαις καὶ ἤγαγεν αὐτὸν βασιλεὺς Βαβυλῶνος εἰς Βαβυλῶνα καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτὸν εἰς οἰκίαν μύλωνος ἕως ἡμέρας ἧς ἀπέθανεν
[Then] they gouged out Zedekiah’s eyes. They fastened him with bronze chains and took him to Babylon. They put him in a prison, and he remained there until the day that he died.
12 καὶ ἐν μηνὶ πέμπτῳ δεκάτῃ τοῦ μηνὸς ἦλθεν Ναβουζαρδαν ὁ ἀρχιμάγειρος ὁ ἑστηκὼς κατὰ πρόσωπον τοῦ βασιλέως Βαβυλῶνος εἰς Ιερουσαλημ
On August 17 of that year, which was when King Nebuchadnezzar had been ruling for almost 19 years, Nebuzaradan, who was the captain of the king’s bodyguards and one of the king’s officials, arrived in Jerusalem.
13 καὶ ἐνέπρησεν τὸν οἶκον κυρίου καὶ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ πάσας τὰς οἰκίας τῆς πόλεως καὶ πᾶσαν οἰκίαν μεγάλην ἐνέπρησεν ἐν πυρί
He [commanded his soldiers to] burn down the temple of Yahweh, the king’s palace, and all the houses in Jerusalem. They [also] destroyed all the important buildings [in the city].
14 καὶ πᾶν τεῖχος Ιερουσαλημ κύκλῳ καθεῖλεν ἡ δύναμις τῶν Χαλδαίων ἡ μετὰ τοῦ ἀρχιμαγείρου
Then he supervised the soldiers from Babylonia while they tore down the walls on all sides of Jerusalem.
Then Nebuzaradan (forced to go/exiled) [to Babylon] some of the poorest people, those Israelis who had said they would support the king of Babylon, the rest of the craftsmen, and other people who had remained in Jerusalem.
16 καὶ τοὺς καταλοίπους τοῦ λαοῦ κατέλιπεν ὁ ἀρχιμάγειρος εἰς ἀμπελουργοὺς καὶ εἰς γεωργούς
But Nebuzaradan allowed some of the very poor people to remain [in Judah] to take care of the vineyards and fields.
17 καὶ τοὺς στύλους τοὺς χαλκοῦς τοὺς ἐν οἴκῳ κυρίου καὶ τὰς βάσεις καὶ τὴν θάλασσαν τὴν χαλκῆν τὴν ἐν οἴκῳ κυρίου συνέτριψαν οἱ Χαλδαῖοι καὶ ἔλαβον τὸν χαλκὸν αὐτῶν καὶ ἀπήνεγκαν εἰς Βαβυλῶνα
The soldiers from Babylonia broke [into pieces] the [huge] bronze pillars that were in front of the temple, and the [large] bronze water tank, and the [ten bronze water] carts, and they took all the bronze to Babylon.
18 καὶ τὴν στεφάνην καὶ τὰς φιάλας καὶ τὰς κρεάγρας καὶ πάντα τὰ σκεύη τὰ χαλκᾶ ἐν οἷς ἐλειτούργουν ἐν αὐτοῖς
They also took away the basins [for holding the ashes from the burned sacrifices], the shovels [for cleaning out the ashes], the tools for snuffing out the wicks of the lamps, the basins [for holding the blood of the sacrificed animals], the dishes [for incense], and all the [other] bronze items that were used when sacrifices were made at the temple.
19 καὶ τὰ σαφφωθ καὶ τὰ μασμαρωθ καὶ τοὺς ὑποχυτῆρας καὶ τὰς λυχνίας καὶ τὰς θυίσκας καὶ τοὺς κυάθους ἃ ἦν χρυσᾶ χρυσᾶ καὶ ἃ ἦν ἀργυρᾶ ἀργυρᾶ ἔλαβεν ὁ ἀρχιμάγειρος
Nebuzaradan also [told his soldiers to] take away the small bowls, the dishes for burning incense, the basins, pots, lampstands, bowls [for incense], and the bowls used for pouring out the wine offerings. They took all the other items that were made of pure gold or silver.
20 καὶ οἱ στῦλοι δύο καὶ ἡ θάλασσα μία καὶ οἱ μόσχοι δώδεκα χαλκοῖ ὑποκάτω τῆς θαλάσσης ἃ ἐποίησεν ὁ βασιλεὺς Σαλωμων εἰς οἶκον κυρίου οὐκ ἦν σταθμὸς τοῦ χαλκοῦ αὐτῶν
The bronze from the two pillars, the [large water] tank and the twelve statues of oxen that were beneath it, and the water carts, was more/heavier than they could weigh. Those things had been made for the temple during the time that Solomon was the king.
21 καὶ οἱ στῦλοι τριάκοντα πέντε πηχῶν ὕψος τοῦ στύλου τοῦ ἑνός καὶ σπαρτίον δώδεκα πήχεων περιεκύκλου αὐτόν καὶ τὸ πάχος αὐτοῦ δακτύλων τεσσάρων κύκλῳ
Each of the pillars was (27 feet/8 meters) tall and (18 feet/5.5 meters) around. They were hollow, and each had sides/walls that were (3 in./8 cm.) thick.
22 καὶ γεῖσος ἐπ’ αὐτοῖς χαλκοῦν καὶ πέντε πήχεων τὸ μῆκος ὑπεροχὴ τοῦ γείσους τοῦ ἑνός καὶ δίκτυον καὶ ῥόαι ἐπὶ τοῦ γείσους κύκλῳ τὰ πάντα χαλκᾶ καὶ κατὰ ταῦτα τῷ στύλῳ τῷ δευτέρῳ ὀκτὼ ῥόαι τῷ πήχει τοῖς δώδεκα πήχεσιν
The bronze head on the top of each pillar was (7-1/2 feet/over 2 meters) high and was decorated all around with a bronze [network of figures that represented] pomegranates.
23 καὶ ἦσαν αἱ ῥόαι ἐνενήκοντα ἓξ τὸ ἓν μέρος καὶ ἦσαν αἱ πᾶσαι ῥόαι ἐπὶ τοῦ δικτύου κύκλῳ ἑκατόν
There was a total of 100 figures of pomegranates on the network at the top, 96 of which could be seen from the ground.
24 καὶ ἔλαβεν ὁ ἀρχιμάγειρος τὸν ἱερέα τὸν πρῶτον καὶ τὸν ἱερέα τὸν δευτερεύοντα καὶ τοὺς τρεῖς τοὺς φυλάττοντας τὴν ὁδὸν
When Nebuzaradan [returned to Babylon], he took [with him as prisoners] Seraiah the Supreme Priest, Zephaniah who was Seraiah’s deputy, and the three men who guarded the entrances [to the temple].
25 καὶ εὐνοῦχον ἕνα ὃς ἦν ἐπιστάτης τῶν ἀνδρῶν τῶν πολεμιστῶν καὶ ἑπτὰ ἄνδρας ὀνομαστοὺς τοὺς ἐν προσώπῳ τοῦ βασιλέως τοὺς εὑρεθέντας ἐν τῇ πόλει καὶ τὸν γραμματέα τῶν δυνάμεων τὸν γραμματεύοντα τῷ λαῷ τῆς γῆς καὶ ἑξήκοντα ἀνθρώπους ἐκ τοῦ λαοῦ τῆς γῆς τοὺς εὑρεθέντας ἐν μέσῳ τῆς πόλεως
He found [some other] people who were [hiding] in the city. [So] from them he took a commander of the army [of Judah], seven of the king’s advisors, the army commander’s chief secretary who was in charge of recruiting [soldiers for the army], and 60 [other] soldiers.
26 καὶ ἔλαβεν αὐτοὺς Ναβουζαρδαν ὁ ἀρχιμάγειρος καὶ ἤγαγεν αὐτοὺς πρὸς βασιλέα Βαβυλῶνος εἰς Δεβλαθα
Nebuzaradan took them all to the king of Babylon, [who was still] at Riblah.
27 καὶ ἐπάταξεν αὐτοὺς βασιλεὺς Βαβυλῶνος ἐν Δεβλαθα ἐν γῇ Αιμαθ
There at Riblah in the Hamath region, the king of Babylon commanded that they [all] be executed. [Many of the people of] Judah were (forced to leave/exiled from) their own land.
The number of people who were captured and sent to Babylon at that time, when Nebuchadnezzar had been ruling for almost seven years, was 3,023.
Then, when he had been ruling for almost 18 years, his [soldiers] took 832 [more Israeli people to Babylonia].
When he had been ruling almost 23 years, he sent Nebuzaradan [to Jerusalem again], and he brought back 745 [more Israelis to Babylonia]. That was a total of 4,600 Israelis [who were taken to Babylonia].
31 καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ τριακοστῷ καὶ ἑβδόμῳ ἔτει ἀποικισθέντος τοῦ Ιωακιμ βασιλέως Ιουδα ἐν τῷ δωδεκάτῳ μηνὶ ἐν τῇ τετράδι καὶ εἰκάδι τοῦ μηνὸς ἔλαβεν Ουλαιμαραδαχ βασιλεὺς Βαβυλῶνος ἐν τῷ ἐνιαυτῷ ᾧ ἐβασίλευσεν τὴν κεφαλὴν Ιωακιμ βασιλέως Ιουδα καὶ ἐξήγαγεν αὐτὸν ἐξ οἰκίας ἧς ἐφυλάττετο
After King Jehoiachin of Judah had been in prison [in Babylon] for almost thirty-seven years, Evil-Merodach became the king of Babylon. He was kind to Jehoiachin and ordered that he be released from prison. That was on March 31 of the year that Evil-Merodach became king.
32 καὶ ἐλάλησεν αὐτῷ χρηστὰ καὶ ἔδωκεν τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ ἐπάνω τῶν θρόνων τῶν βασιλέων τῶν μετ’ αὐτοῦ ἐν Βαβυλῶνι
He [always] spoke kindly to Jehoiachin and gave him a position in which he was honored more than [all] the other kings [who had been exiled/taken to Babylon].
33 καὶ ἤλλαξεν τὴν στολὴν τῆς φυλακῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ ἤσθιεν ἄρτον διὰ παντὸς κατὰ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἃς ἔζησεν
He [supplied new clothes] for Jehoiachin, to replace the clothes that he had been wearing in prison. [He also allowed] Jehoiachin to eat with him every day, all during the rest of his life.
34 καὶ ἡ σύνταξις αὐτῷ ἐδίδοτο διὰ παντὸς παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως Βαβυλῶνος ἐξ ἡμέρας εἰς ἡμέραν ἕως ἡμέρας ἧς ἀπέθανεν
Every day, the King [of Babylon] gave him some money [to buy the things that he needed. That continued] until the day that Jehoiachin died.
