2Ki 25, Jer 39, Jer 52, Eze 33:21 | ESV | STEP | And in the ninth year of his reign , in the tenth month , on the tenth day of the month , Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it. And they built siegeworks all around it.

1 ^aAnd in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, ^bNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it. ^cAnd they built siegeworks all around it. 2 So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 3 On the ninth day of the fourth month ^dthe famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 4 Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, by ^ethe king’s garden, and ^fthe Chaldeans were around the city. And they went in the direction of the ^gArabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. 6 Then they captured the king ^hand brought him up to the king of Babylon at ⁱRiblah, and they passed sentence on him. 7 They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, ^jand put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains and took him to Babylon.

8 ^kIn the fifth month, on ^lthe seventh day of the month—that was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—Nebuzaradan, the captain of the bodyguard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 9 ^mAnd he burned the house of the Lord ⁿand the king’s house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down. 10 And all the army of the Chaldeans, who were with the captain of the guard, ^obroke down the walls around Jerusalem. 11 ^pAnd the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the multitude, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried into exile. 12 But the captain of the guard left ^qsome of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen.

13 ^rAnd the pillars ^sof bronze that were in the house of the Lord, and ^tthe stands and ^uthe bronze sea that were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried the bronze to Babylon. 14 ^vAnd they took away the pots and the shovels and the snuffers and the dishes for incense and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service, 15 the fire pans also and the bowls. What was of gold the captain of the guard took away as gold, and what was of silver, as silver. 16 As for the two pillars, the one sea, and the stands that Solomon had made for the house of the Lord, ^wthe bronze of all these vessels was beyond weight. 17 ^xThe height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, ^{▼▼A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters} and on it was a capital of bronze. The height of the capital was three cubits. A latticework and pomegranates, all of bronze, were all around the capital. And the second pillar had the same, with the latticework.

18 ^zAnd the captain of the guard took ^aaSeraiah the chief priest and ^abZephaniah the second priest and the three keepers of the threshold; 19 and from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of war, and ^acfive men of the king’s council who were found in the city; and the secretary of the commander of the army, who mustered the people of the land; and sixty men of the people of the land, who were found in the city. 20 And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at ^adRiblah. 21 And the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at ^aeRiblah in the land of Hamath. ^afSo Judah was taken into exile out of its land.

Gedaliah Made Governor of Judah

22 And over the people who remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, he appointed ^agGedaliah the son of ^ahAhikam, son of Shaphan, governor. 23 ^aiNow when all the captains and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah governor, they came with their men to Gedaliah at ^ajMizpah, namely, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite. 24 And Gedaliah swore to them and their men, saying, “Do not be afraid because of the Chaldean officials. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.” 25 ^akBut in the seventh month, ^alIshmael the son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family, came with ten men and struck down Gedaliah and put him to death along with the Jews and the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah. 26 ^amThen all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the forces arose and went to Egypt, for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.

Jehoiachin Released from Prison

27 ^anAnd in the thirty-seventh year of ^aothe exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously ^apfreed ^{▼▼Hebrew reign, lifted up the head of} Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. 28 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life ^arhe dined regularly at the king’s table, 30 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, as long as he lived.

Jeremiah 39

The Fall of Jerusalem

1 ^asIn the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 In the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, a breach was made in the city. 3 Then all ^atthe officials of the king of Babylon came ^auand sat in the middle gate: Nergal-sar-ezer of Samgar, Nebu-sar-sekim ^avthe Rab-saris, Nergal-sar-ezer the Rab-mag, with all the rest of the officers of the king of Babylon. 4 When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled, going out of the city at night by way of the king’s garden through the gate between the two walls; and they went toward ^awthe Arabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in ^axthe plains of Jericho. And when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, at ^ayRiblah, in the land of Hamath; ^azand he passed sentence on him. 6 The king of Babylon ^baslaughtered the sons of Zedekiah at ^bbRiblah before his eyes, and the king of Babylon ^bcslaughtered all the nobles of Judah. 7 ^bdHe put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains to take him to Babylon. 8 ^beThe Chaldeans burned the king’s house and the house of the people, ^bfand broke down the walls of Jerusalem. 9 Then ^bgNebuzaradan, the ^bhcaptain of the guard, carried into exile to Babylon the rest of the people who were left in the city, ^bithose who had deserted to him, and the people who remained. 10 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, ^bjleft in the land of Judah some of the poor people who owned nothing, and gave them vineyards and fields at the same time.

The Lord Delivers Jeremiah

11 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon gave command concerning Jeremiah through Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, saying, 12 ^bk“Take him, look after him well, and do him no harm, but deal with him as he tells you.” 13 So ^blNebuzaradan the captain of the guard, Nebushazban the Rab-saris, Nergal-sar-ezer the Rab-mag, ^bmand all the chief officers of the king of Babylon 14 sent and took Jeremiah from ^bnthe court of the guard. They entrusted him to ^boGedaliah the son of ^bpAhikam, son of ^bqShaphan, that he should take him home. So ^brhe lived among the people.

15 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah ^bswhile he was shut up in the court of the guard: 16 “Go, and say to ^btEbed-melech the Ethiopian, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ^buBehold, I will fulfill my words against this city for harm and ^bvnot for good, and they shall be accomplished before you on that day. 17 But I will deliver you on that day, declares the Lord, and you shall not be given into the hand of the men ^bwof whom you are afraid. 18 For I will surely save you, and you shall not fall by the sword, but you shall have your ^bxlife as a prize of war, ^bybecause you have put your trust in me, declares the Lord.’”

Jeremiah 52

The Fall of Jerusalem Recounted

1 ^bzZedekiah was 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 Libnah. 2 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, ^caaccording to all that Jehoiakim had done. 3 For because of the anger of the Lord it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that he cast them out from his presence.

And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. 4 ^cbAnd in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem, and laid siege to it. And they built siegeworks all around it. 5 So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 6 On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 7 Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled and went out from the city by night by the way of a gate between the two walls, by the king’s garden, and the Chaldeans were around the city. And they went in the direction of the Arabah. 8 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. 9 Then they captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he passed sentence on him. 10 The king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and also slaughtered all the officials of Judah at ^ccRiblah. 11 ^cdHe put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in chains, and the king of Babylon took him to Babylon, and put him in prison ^cetill the day of his death.

The Temple Burned

12 ^cfIn the fifth month, on ^cgthe tenth day of the month—that was ^chthe nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard, who ^ciserved the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem. 13 And he burned the house of the Lord, and the king’s house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down. 14 And all the army of the Chaldeans, who were with the captain of the guard, broke down all the walls around Jerusalem. 15 And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive some of the poorest of the people and the rest of the people who were left in the city and ^cjthe deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the artisans. 16 But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen.

17 And the ^ckpillars of bronze that were in the house of the Lord, and the stands and the ^clbronze sea that were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces, and ^cmcarried all the bronze to Babylon. 18 And they took away ^cnthe pots and the shovels and the snuffers and the basins and the dishes for incense and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service; 19 ^coalso the small bowls and the fire pans and the basins and the pots and ^cpthe lampstands and ^cqthe dishes for incense ^crand the bowls for drink offerings. What was of gold the captain of the guard took away as gold, and what was of silver, as silver. 20 As for the two pillars, the one sea, ^csthe twelve bronze bulls that were under the sea, ^{▼▼Hebrew lacks the sea} and the stands, which Solomon the king had made for the house of the Lord, the bronze of all these things was beyond weight. 21 As for the pillars, the height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, ^{▼▼A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters} ^cvits circumference was twelve cubits, and its thickness was four fingers, and it was hollow. 22 On it was a capital of bronze. The height of the one capital was ^cwfive cubits. A network and pomegranates, all of bronze, were around the capital. And the second pillar had the same, with pomegranates. 23 There were ninety-six pomegranates on the sides; all the pomegranates were a hundred upon the network all around.

The People Exiled to Babylon

24 And the captain of the guard took ^cxSeraiah the chief priest, and ^cyZephaniah the second priest and the three keepers of the threshold; 25 and from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of war, and ^czseven men of the king’s council, who were found in the city; and the secretary of the commander 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 them and brought them to the king of Babylon at ^daRiblah. 27 And the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at ^dbRiblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was taken into exile out of its land.

28 This is the number of the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: ^dcin the seventh year, 3,023 Judeans; 29 ^ddin the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem 832 persons; 30 in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Judeans 745 persons; all the persons were 4,600.

Jehoiachin Released from Prison

31 ^deAnd in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed ^{▼▼Hebrew king, lifted up the head of} ^dgJehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. 32 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of ^dhthe kings who were with him in Babylon. 33 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, 34 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, until the day of his death, as long as he lived.

Ezekiel 33:21

Jerusalem Struck Down

21 In the ^ditwelfth year ^djof our exile, in the tenth month, on the fifth day of the month, ^dka fugitive from Jerusalem came to me and said, ^dl“The city has been struck down.”