Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, then Jehoiachin Rule
1 Then the people of the land tookJoahaz the son of Josiah, and made him king in place of his father in Jerusalem.
2 Joahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem.
3 Then the king of Egypt deposed him at Jerusalem, and imposed on the land a fine of one hundred talents of silver and one talent of gold.
4 The king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But Neco took Joahaz his brother and brought him to Egypt.
5 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and he did evil in the sight of the Lordhis God.
6 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against him and bound him with bronzechainsto take him to Babylon.
7 Nebuchadnezzar also broughtsomeof the articles of the house of the Lordto Babylon and put them in his temple at Babylon.
8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim and the abominations which he did, and what was found against him, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. And Jehoiachin his son became king in his place.
9 Jehoiachin was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem, and he did evil in the sight of the Lord.
Captivity in Babylon Begun
10 At the turn of the year King Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon with the valuable articles of the house of the Lord, and he made his kinsman Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.
Zedekiah Rules in Judah
11 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem.
12 He did evil in the sight of the Lordhis God; he did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet who spoke for the Lord.
13 He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar who had made him swearallegianceby God. But he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LordGod of Israel.
14 Furthermore, all the officials of the priests and the people were very unfaithfulfollowingall the abominations of the nations; and they defiled the house of the Lordwhich He had sanctified in Jerusalem.
15 The Lord, the God of their fathers, sentwordto them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place;
16 but theycontinuallymocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lordarose against His people, until there was no remedy.
17 Therefore He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or infirm; He gavethemall into his hand.
18 All the articles of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king and of his officers, he broughtthemall to Babylon.
19 Then they burned the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its fortified buildings with fire and destroyed all its valuable articles.
20 Those who had escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon; and they were servants to him and to his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia,
21 to fulfill the word of the Lordby the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its sabbaths. All the days of its desolation it kept sabbath until seventy years were complete.
Cyrus Permits Return
22 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia-in order to fulfill the word of the Lordby the mouth of Jeremiah-the Lordstirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout his kingdom, and alsoput itin writing, saying,
23 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all His people, may the Lordhis God be with him, and let him go up!'”
—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/2CH/36-5517998930c9834116b1c66b26b12876.mp3?version_id=100—