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2 Kings 25

Life Application Study Bible2 KingsChapter 25

2 Kings 25

New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 614, 615, 616

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252 Kings 25

The Fall of Jerusalem

1Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

2So onJanuary 15,* during the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon led his entire army against Jerusalem. They surrounded the city and built siege ramps against its walls. Jerusalem was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah’s reign. 3By July 18 in the eleventh year of Zedekiah’s reign,* the famine in the city had become very severe, and the last of the food was entirely gone. Then a section of the city wall was broken down, and all the soldiers fled. Since the city was surrounded by the Babylonians,* they waited for nightfall. Then they slipped through the gate between the two walls behind the king’s garden and headed toward the Jordan Valley.* 5But the Babylonian* troops chased the king and caught him on the plains of Jericho, for his men had all deserted him and scattered. 6They took him to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where they pronounced judgment upon Zedekiah. 7They made Zedekiah watch as they slaughtered his sons. Then they gouged out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon.

The Temple Destroyed

80On August 14 of that year,* which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard and an official of the Babylonian king, arrived in Jerusalem. 9He burned down the Temple of the LORD, the royal palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem. He destroyed all the important buildings* in the city. 9Then he supervised the entire Babylonian army as they tore down the walls of Jerusalem on every side. *1Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, then took as exiles the rest of the people who remained in the city, the defectors who had declared their allegiance to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the population. '?But the captain of the guard allowed some of the poorest people to stay behind in Judah to care for the vineyards and fields. 13The Babylonians broke up the bronze pillars in front of the LORD’s Temple, the bronze water carts, and the great bronze basin called the Sea, and they carried all the bronze away to Babylon. 4They also took all the ash buckets, shovels, lamp snuffers, dishes, and all the other bronze articles used for making sacrifices at the Temple. SNebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, also took the incense burners and basins, and all the other articles made of pure gold or silver. 16The weight of the bronze from the two pillars, the Sea, and the water carts was too great to be measured. These things had been made for the LORD‘s Temple in the days of King Solomon. ‘’Each of the pillars was 27 feet* tall. The bronze capital on top of each pillar was 7% feet* high and was decorated with a network of bronze pomegranates ail the way around. 18Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took with him as prisoners Seraiah the high priest, Zephaniah the priest of the second rank, and the three chief gatekeepers. 19And from among the people still hiding in the city, he took an officer who had been in charge of the Judean army; five of the king's personal advisers; the army commander's chief secretary, who was in charge of recruitment; and sixty other citizens. 20Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took them all to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21And there at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, the king of Babylon had them all put to death. So the people of Judah were sent into exile from their land.

Gedaliah Governs in Judah

2222Then King Nebuchadnezzar appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan as governor over the people he had left in Judah. 2 When all the army commanders and their men learned that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah as governor, they went to see him at Mizpah. These included Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jezaniah* son of the Maacathite, and all their men. 24Gedaliah vowed to them that the Babylonian officials meant them no harm. “Don’t be afraid of them. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and all will go well for you,” he promised. 25But in midautumn of that year,* Ishmael son of Nethaniah and grandson of Elishama, who was of the royal family, went to Mizpah with ten men and killed Gedaliah. He also killed all the Judeans and Babylonians who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah. 26Then all the people of Judah, from the least to the greatest, as well as the army commanders, fled in panic to Egypt, for they were afraid of what the Babylonians would do to them.

Hope for Israel’s Royal Line

2727In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of King Jehoiachin of Judah, Evil-merodach ascended to the Babylonian throne. He was kind to* Jehoiachin and released him from prison on April 2 of that year.* 28He spoke kindly to Jehoiachin and gave him a higher place than all the other exiled kings in Babylon. 29He supplied Jehoiachin with new clothes to replace his prison garb and allowed him to dine in the king's presence for the rest of his life. 30So the Babylonian king gave him a regular food allowance as long as he lived.

Textual footnotes

  1. of events in 2 Kings can be cross-checked with dates in surviving Babylonian records and related accurately to our
  2. modern calendar. This day was January 15,588 B.c.
  3. eleventh year of Zedekiah’s reign] (compare Jer 52:6 and the note there). This day was July 18, 586 B.c.; also see
  4. note on 25:1.
  5. in 25:10, 24.
  6. was August 14, 586 B.c.; also see note on 25:1.
  7. ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This day was April 2, 561 8.c.; also see note on 25:1.
  8. 25:1 Hebrew on the tenth day of the tenth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar catendar. A number
  9. 25:3 Hebrew By the ninth day of the {fourth} month [in the
  10. 25:4a Or the Chaldeans; also in 25:13, 25, 26.
  11. 25:4b Hebrew the Arabah.
  12. 25:5 Or Chaidean, also
  13. 25:8 Hebrew On the seventh day of the fifth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This day
  14. 25:9 Or destroyed the houses of aif the important people.
  15. 25:17a Hebrew 18 cubits [8.1 meters].
  16. 25:17b As in parallel texts at 1 Kgs 7:16, 2 Chr 3:15, and Jer 52:22, all of which read 5 cubits [2.3 meters]; Hebrew reads 3 cubits, which is 4.5 feet or 1.4 meters.
  17. 25:23 As in parallel text at Jer 40:8; Hebrew reads Jaazaniah, a variant spelling of Jezaniah.
  18. 25:25 Hebrew in the seventh month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This month occurred within the months of October and November 586 B.c.; also see note on 25:1.
  19. 25:27a Hebrew He raised the head of.
  20. 25:27b Hebrew on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth monih, of the

Life Application Notes 9 notes

25:1Judah was invaded by the Babylonians three times (24:1; 24:10; 25:1), just as Israel was invaded by the Assyrians three times. Once again, God demonstrated his mercy in the face of deserved judgment by giving the people repeated opportunities to repent.

25:13The bronze basin called the Sea was used to hold the huge reservoir of water for ritual cleansing for the priests. The bronze was so valuable that it was broken up and carried off to Babylon.

25:21Judah, like Israel, was unfaithful to God. So God, as he had warned, allowed Judah to be destroyed and taken away (Deuteronomy 28). The book of Lamentations records the prophet Jeremiah’s sorrow at seeing Jerusalem destroyed.

25:22In place of the king (Zedekiah) who was deported to Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar appointed a governor (Gedaliah), who would faithfully administer the Babylonian policies.

25:22-30This story shows that Israel's last hope of gaining hack its land was gone—even the army commanders (now guerrilla rebels) had fled. Judah's earthly kingdom was absojutely demolished. But through prophets like Ezekiel and Daniel, who were also captives, God was able to keep his spiritual Kingdom alive in the hearts of many of the exiles.

28:25Josiah is remembered as Judah’s most obedient king. His obedience followed this pattern: (1) He recognized sin; (2) he eliminated sinful practices; (3) he attacked the causes Of sin, This approach for dealing with sin works. Not only must We remove sinful actions, we must also eliminate causes for Sin—those situations, relationships, routines, and patterns of life that 'ead us to the door of temptation.

28:25Both Josiah and Hezekiah (18:5) are praised for their reverence toward God. Hezekiah was said to be greatest in trusting God (faith), while Josiah is said to be greatest in following the law of God (obedience). May we follow their example through our trust in God and our obedient actions.

25:27Evil-merodach, the son of Nebuchadnezzar, became king of the Babylonian Empire in 562 B.C., 24 years after the beginning of the general captivity and 37 years after Jehoiachin was removed from Jerusalem. The new king treated Jehoiachin with kindness, even allowing him to eat at his table (25:29). Evil-merodach was later killed in a plot by his brother-in-law, Nergal-sharezer, who succeeded him to the throne.

25:30The book of 2 Kings opens with Elijah being carried to heaven—the destination awaiting those who follow God. But the book ends with the people of Judah being carried off to foreign lands as humiliated slaves—the result of failing to follow God.

Charts, profiles & sidebars from the printed pages

Study feature · page 616

Second Kings is an illustration of what happens when we make anything more important than God, when we make ruinous alliances, when our consciences become desensitized to right and wrong, and when we are no longer able to discern God's purpose for our lives. We may fail, like the people of Judah and Israel, but God’s promises do not. He is always available to help us straighten out our lives and start over. And that is just what would happen in the book of Ezra. When the people acknowledged their sins, God was ready and willing to help them return to their land and start again.

Study feature · page 617

CHRONICLES

1 Hebron Although David had been anointed king years earlier, his reign began when the leaders of Israel accepted him as king at Hebron (11:1-3). 2 Jerusalem David set out to complete the conquest of the land begun by Joshua. He attacked Jerusalem, captured it, and made it his capital (11:4—12:40). 3 Kiriath-jearim The Ark of the Covenant, which had been captured by the Philistines in battle and returned (1 Samuel 4—6), was in safekeeping in Kiriath-jearim. David summoned all Israel to this city to join in bringing the Ark to Jerusalem. Unfortunately, it was not moved according to God’s instructions, and as a result, one man died. David left the Ark in the home of Obed-edom until he could discover how to transport it correctly (13:1-14), 4Tyre David did much building in Jerusalem. King Hiram of Tyre sent workers and supplies to help build David’s palace. Cedar, abundant in the mountains north of Israel, was a valuable and hardy wood for the beautiful buildings in Jerusalem (14:1—17:27). 5 Baal-perazim David was not very popular with the Philistines because he had slain Goliath, one of their greatest warriors (1 Samuel 17). When David began to rule over a united Israel, the Philistines set out to capture him. But as David and his army approached Jerusalem, they attacked the Philistines at Baal-perazim. His army defeated the mighty Philistines twice, causing all the surrounding nations to fear David's power (14:11-17). After these battles, David moved the Ark to Jerusalern (this time in accordance with God’s Mediterranean Sea The broken lines (—-—-) indicate modern boundaries. The genealogies of 1 Chronicles present an overview of tsrael's instructions for transporting the Ark). There was great celebrahistory. The first nine chapters are filled with genealogies tracing tion as the Ark was brought into Jerusalem (15:1—17:27). the lineages of people from the Creation to the exile in Babylon. David spent the remainder of his life making preparations for Saul’s death is recorded in chapter 10. Chapter 11 begins the the building of the Temple, a central place for the worship of history of David’s reign over Israel. God (18:1—29:30).

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